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In a surprise legal twist, prosecutors Tuesday morning successfully moved to jail Joni Clayton, the elementary school counselor accused of crashing a vehicle into a building while driving with 0.556% blood-alcohol content.
The latest development in the case happened at the arraignment of Clayton, 61, who is accused of criminal driving with a suspended license, reckless driving, criminal mischief and driving under the influence of intoxicants for the Sept. 13 crash, court records show.
Clayton, who makes $111,463 a year as an elementary school counselor at Happy Valley Elementary, was also involved in two other alleged crashes where officials say that alcohol was involved.
On April 1, 2025, she drove into a fence and clocked a blood-alcohol content of 0.492%, court documents show. She ultimately pleaded guilty to criminal mischief and DUII, court records show, and a judge sentenced her to rehab, which she failed to complete.
In June 2026, she allegedly rear-ended another car hard enough to slam it into the car in front of it, court records show, and she later registered a 0.24% blood-alcohol content.
“This repeated behavior poses a danger to the community, both to Ms. Clayton herself and the community broadly,” prosecutor Noah Berg said in his motion to take Clayton into custody Tuesday. “All three of her DUI incidents have resulted in property damage and, frankly, it’s a wonder there hasn’t been harm to any individuals.”
Berg’s motion to take Clayton into custody appeared to come as a shock to her legal counsel, who said she hadn’t received advance notice that the state would be trying to put her client behind bars.
But despite the lack of time to prepare, attorney Shannon Kmetic mounted an argument for release with an electronic monitoring device to detect alcohol consumption instead of detention.
“My position is that Ms. Clayton received a citation to appear. She appeared today,” she said. “From Ms. Clayton’s and my perspective, frankly, she has complied with the current conditions associated with this case.”
The mostly expressionless Clayton either looked down or looked up at the TV where her attorney was appearing by teleconference throughout the proceedings, and at one point she held up a copy of the probable cause affidavit for the case to block her face from a TV news camera.
After hearing counter-arguments from Berg, Judge Jane Fox eventually sided with the state’s motion to take Clayton into custody, on the grounds that a sobriety bracelet wouldn’t stop her from getting behind the wheel of a car.
Fox set bail at $50,000, and a sheriff’s deputy handcuffed Clayton and took her away.
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