san diego dui attorney news

The executive director of a program that supervises misdemeanor and DUI probationers was suspended without pay Wednesday following a Monday arrest on charges of DUI driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an accident, resisting deputies and disorderly intoxication.

Margot "Peggy" Cioffi, 59, of Palm City was released from the Martin County jail on $2,000 bond, according to DUI arrest records.

Cioffi has been the guiding force behind the Comprehensive Offender Rehabilitation and Education Program, known as CORE, since it began nearly 30 years ago. She took the lead in expanding it to an organization that handles misdemeanor and DUI probation in St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties and DUI probation in Martin County.

Deputies found her in her car in her garage after a motorist reported she rammed the back of his car on Martin Downs Boulevard and left the scene around 5:30 p.m. Monday, records showed.

She resisted deputies when they tried to handcuff her and place her in a DUI patrol car, DUI reports said.

Martin sheriff's deputies reported her DUI breath test showed a blood-alcohol level of 0.34 percent, which is more than four times the 0.08 percent level at which Florida law presumes a driver is DUI impaired.

The level was so high she had to be cleared by a doctor at Martin Memorial Medical Center before the jail would accept her.

Treasure Coast State Attorney Bruce Colton serves as chairman of the nonprofit's board and has known Cioffi for many years. He said the board held a conference call Wednesday and made the decision to order the suspension until Cioffi's DUI case is resolved.

He joined other agency officials in saying there were no prior DUI problems with Cioffi or any hint of an alcohol DUI problem.

"I didn't see this coming," Colton said. "I had no indication there was anything like this going on."

Because Cioffi has worked with DUI prosecutors in all four offices in the 19th district so a special dui prosecutor is likely.