Man convicted of DUI manslaughter arrested again

TAMPA - Nearly a decade after being sentenced to prison for DUI manslaughter, a Bay area man faces a new set of charges that he’s been driving drunk, according to Tampa police.

William Ham, 31, had been on early release from jail, police say, when an officer pulled up behind him at a stoplight at around 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday. When the light turned green, officers say Ham’s silver Nissan didn’t move, and the officer decided to walk up to his car and see what was wrong.

Ham appeared to be passed out or sleeping at the wheel, police say, and when the officer asked for his license he tried to hand her $20 bills. It was when the officer ran his information that she discovered he was on early release, according to a news release.

Ham was not allowed to use alcohol or illegal drugs as one of the conditions of his early release, authorities said, and was arrested after a DUI unit conducted a sobriety test and found him over the state’s legal limit.  His blood alcohol level was .18, according to the arrest report.

In October 1998, Ham was driving drunk and hit 36-year-old Sandra Allen, who died from the collision. He was 21 at the time.

Ham is being held at the Orient Road Jail without bond on charges of driving under the influence and violation of probation, according to jail records.