Well, that explains the "Segway Steve" sightings

Steve May, one of the masterminds behind the faux-Green write-in candidates scandal that has gained national notice and a Republican candidate for the legislature in LD17, is regularly spotted cruising Mill Avenue in Tempe on his Segway.  Actually, he's been sighted all over Tempe on it, and was even seen arriving at the hearing on the Green candidates' ballot eligibility in U.S. District Court in Phoenix on it.

Turns out that the reason for his "green-consciousness" may be less motivated by high-minded concern for the environment and more by his more mundane legal troubles. 

From the Arizona Republic -

Steve May, a candidate for the state House of Representatives, spent 10 days in jail and is on probation for three years on a conviction for drunken driving last year.

Court documents obtained by The Arizona Republic show that May was arrested on June 26, 2009, and charged with the most extreme possible DUI while driving 83 mph on Interstate 17 in north Phoenix, where the speed limit is 55 mph.

May was charged with a "super extreme" DUI, reserved for people driving with a blood-alcohol level above 0.20 percent. A reading of 0.08 percent is considered legally drunk.

While the story goes on to say that May pled guilty to driving under the influence of liquor, court records tell a somewhat different story.

The case in question looks to be TR2009-136015, involving one Stephen Timothy May, date of birth 11/29/1971, and adjudicated in the Moon Valley Justice Court.  According to court records available online, May pled guilty to "DUI-LIQUOR/DRUGS/VAPORS/COMBO." 

A specific charge made all the curiouser given the following passage from later in the story -

A March letter from an official with the treatment center [Scottsdale Treatment Inc.] states that May, 38, was attending the program twice weekly and that a "specialist in addictive medicine has been treating Mr. May for coexisting issues."

On Friday, May said he has been honest with his supporters about the DUI conviction. Asked what the "coexisting issues" were - and whether they involved treatment for drug abuse - May declined to comment.

"I'm not going to go into detail," he said. "It's not relevant. I've been honest about the things I've done."

I admit, I *really* wonder what the "vapor" or "combo" with alcohol in the charge was.  And whether or not May's addiction "treatment" has taken.