PA Trooper From West Chester Tried To Scrub Another's DUI: D.A.

WEST CHESTER, PA — A Pennsylvania State trooper from West Chester is accused of changing the information on the DUI arrest record of another trooper's father and is charged with obstructing the administration of the law and tampering with public records.

The Chester County District Attorney’s Office and Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) allege that PSP Corporal Jennifer Ruhl, 50, of West Chester, attempted to conceal a DUI arrest involving the father of another PSP trooper, according to the District Attorney's Office.

Ruhl, who has been a Pennsylvania State trooper for 23 years, is charged with obstructing the administration of law, unsworn falsification, tampering with public records or information, and hindering apprehension or prosecution.

Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan said, "This investigation demonstrates that no matter who you are, no person is above the law, and everyone must be held accountable. We hold law enforcement to the highest standards, and the defendant betrayed her sworn oath with these criminal acts. Law enforcement must continue to police their own, just as Pennsylvania State Police did here."

The case in question was a DUI arrest on Nov. 26, 2019, when two State Troopers stopped a driver for erratic driving in Lower Oxford Township, the District Attorney reported.

The driver failed sobriety tests and then had blood drawn at Jennersville Hospital and was transported to PSP Avondale Station, where he was photographed and fingerprinted, according to the D.A.'s report.

While at the Avondale Station, the driver informed one of the arresting troopers that his son was also a PSP trooper, the D.A.'s report said. This information was reported to the defendant, who was the patrol unit supervisor that night, according to the report.

The arresting troopers were called to Ruhl's office, where they were questioned about the arrest and whether they were aware of the driver's relationship to another PSP trooper, the report said.

One of the arresting troopers acknowledged that he knew the driver had a son on the PSP force, the report said. The evidence collected in connection with the case was then processed following police protocol, the D.A. said.

NMS Labs in Horsham, Pa., tested the driver's blood sample and sent a report back on Dec. 11, 2019. The report, however, went missing despite confirmation that it was received at the Avondale Station, the D.A.'s report said.

The D.A.'s report said it was requested again on Jan.15, 2020, and that the sample report indicated the blood alcohol level was .093 percent; the legal limit for operating a vehicle is .08 percent.

On Jan. 2, 2020, Ruhl allegedly instructed a Police Communication Officer (PCO) to change the name of the arresting/investigating officer for the case to hers even though she was not at the scene of the DUI.

A month later, on Feb. 6, 2020, Ruhl allegedly instructed another PCO to change the classification of the DUI investigation to a "towed vehicle." Then on Feb. 14, 2020, she prepared and submitted another report that changed all the information to include that the driver of the vehicle was not impaired, according to the District Attorney's report.

On April 13, 2020, a fax from the Avondale Station to the PSP Bureau of Records and Information indicated that the original information contained in the report about the driver's arrest for DUI was incorrect and that no charges would be filed, the D.A. reported.

Ruhl is currently suspended without pay. She will be arraigned sometime this month, the District Attorney's Office said.

The PSP Bureau of Integrity and Professional Standards, Internal Affairs Division, investigated this case with the assistance of the Chester County District Attorney’s Office.

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