A driver found asleep at the wheel of a car sitting in a roadway, with an AR15 style weapon beside him, was arrested Monday night.

Jason Ross Nichols, 47, Solsberry, was arrested by Deputy Michael Coy of the Greene County Sheriff's Department on Monday, February 27.

Deputy Coy was dispatched to a location on North Legion Road in the Solsberry area Monday night after a citizen called dispatch and reported a silver older model car was in the middle of the road with the driver’s side door open and a man slumped over the steering wheel. The caller said the man was not moving and there was an AR15 in the passenger seat of the vehicle and when she saw it, she left.

Deputy Coy arrived on the scene around 8:23 PM and found the car facing eastbound, stopped in the westbound lane, on North Legion Rd. With his service weapon drawn, he approached the vehicle and saw the AR15 style rifle in the passenger seat and the man slumped over in the driver's seat with the driver’s door open. The man did not have any signs of injury and had good color in his hands and wrists. It appeared he was just sleeping.

Deputy Coy then removed the AR15 style rifle through the open passenger door window and he removed a small knife that was in the passenger seat under a jacket along with a pair of scissors.

When Deputy Coy returned to the driver’s side of the vehicle and tried to wake the man up, he responded but then went back to sleep and EMS was requested to come check on the man who was later identified as Nichols.

Nichols then started to wake up and talked to Deputy Coy and Deputy Logan Milligan arrived on scene around 8:30 PM to assist.

A records check revealed that Nichols was an habitual traffic violator with a lifetime suspension of his driver’s license. He allegedly admitted that he knew his license was suspended and that he was HTV but he was in the process of getting his license back.

According to Deputy Coy, Nichols said he had car trouble but he was not intoxicated. He said he was just sleeping in the car. He also said he does not drink but he does smoke marijuana and takes Xanax. Nichols was swaying while talking to EMS personnel and his speech was slurred but he declined medical services. Deputy Milligan later reported that she found marijuana and Xanax pills inside the vehicle along with a baggie containing a green plant material.

Nichols was transported to the Greene County Sheriff's Department where he refused to undergo standardized field sobriety testing and refused to take a chemical test. A search warrant was issued and a blood draw was taken by medical personnel.

Nichols was booked into the Greene County Jail around 11:07 PM. He was being held without bond. When he appears in court for his initial hearing, he will be facing charges of:

Operating a motor vehicle after forfeiture of license for life, a Level 5 felony,
Possession of a controlled substance, a Class A misdemeanor, and
Possession of marijuana, a Class B misdemeanor.