PROVO — A BYU football player pleaded guilty Monday to impaired driving.
Neil Armstrong Pau'u was charged in June in Provo Justice Court with DUI, a class B misdemeanor; and interfering with a traffic control device, a class C misdemeanor.
On June 8, just before 1 a.m., Pau'u drove onto a newly paved road that was blocked off by a police patrol car with flashing emergency lights, a barricade and yellow tape, according to a Utah County Jail report. Pau'u drove around the police car and through the yellow tape.
When police stopped him, an officer could smell a "strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from inside the vehicle," the report states.
During a field sobriety test, Pau'u had a blood-alcohol content of 0.147 percent, or nearly three times the legal limit.
On Monday, he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of impaired driving, a class B misdemeanor, and the other charge was dismissed. He was sentenced to 48 hours of work diversion - such as community service - in lieu of two days in jail. He was also placed on one year probation and must complete an alcohol/substance abuse evaluation, according to court records.
Pau'u, from Santa Ana, California, is a junior at Brigham Young University and a receiver on the football team.