TEMPE, AZ — A Tempe police officer who recently received an award from Mothers Against Drunk Driving for work to prevent DUIs was arrested for allegedly driving under the influence earlier this week, according to court records.
A spokesperson for the Arizona Department of Public Safety confirmed to the ABC15 Investigators that Officer Zachary Hyde was arrested by troopers because they had probable cause that he was driving under the influence.
According to the traffic citation obtained by ABC15, Hyde was cited for DUI on Wednesday near 19th Avenue and West Alameda Road just after midnight.
The details around the traffic stop are not clear but records show a trooper with the Arizona Department of Public Safety pulled him over after he was driving about 10 miles per hour in a posted 35-mile-per-hour speed zone.
A spokesperson for the Tempe Police Department confirmed to the ABC15 Investigators that the incident happened while Hyde was off-duty and he has been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. Hyde has been with the department for two years.
"Any time a criminal investigation is brought to our attention about one of our officers, we take the matter very seriously," Tempe police said in a statement.
The Tempe Police Department shared a post about Hyde’s work with its DUI squad just over a month ago as he was one of many law enforcement officers honored by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).
The post read, “Congratulations to Officer Zachary Hyde and Officer Gavin Young. Last night both received the Hero Award at the 35th annual Mothers Against Drunk Driving Law Enforcement recognition banquet. Your hard work and diligence to ensuring the safety of our streets was recognized tonight among Officers from the whole State of Arizona.”
DPS said they could not provide any more details about the traffic arrest at the time of this story.
ABC15 spoke with the executive director for MADD who said they have been made aware of the situation involving Hyde.
MADD honors officers across the valley and the state for the work to prevent and stop DUIs through their policing and arrests.
Officers are nominated by their own police department for work that was done throughout 2023.
We also reached out to Hyde who declined to comment.
