A second Corvallis motorist is suing the city for false arrest in an

impaired-driving case involving discredited former police officer Dave Cox.

In a lawsuit filed June 13 in U.S. District Court in Eugene, Carl Feher claims he was wrongfully cited two years ago for driving under the influence of intoxicants, although he was sober at the time.

According to police reports of the incident, a breath test turned out negative for alcohol and a trained examiner found no evidence of drug use. A urine test later came back negative for traces of drugs.

The suit is similar to one filed April 1 by Brian J. Noakes, who was cited by Cox last year for DUII despite passing drug and alcohol tests.

Both men are represented by Dan Rayfield, an attorney with the Albany firm of Weatherford, Thompson, Cowgill, Black & Schultz. The suits seek unspecified amounts of monetary damages, plus legal fees.

"We tried to settle both of them at the same time," Rayfield said. "The big hitch here is having an arrest on your record and having that removed. We've been trying to find alternative ways to get arrests removed, but so far every door has been closed."

Oregon law allows people to petition for the removal of an arrest or conviction from their criminal record. Motor vehicle offenses, however, are specifically exempted from that statute - even in cases such as these, where the charges were dropped or dismissed.

The city reached out-of-court settlements in two previous wrongful arrest claims involving DUII busts by Officer Cox for a total of $5,500, but Rayfield appears to be holding out for a higher amount for his clients.

"Damages are tough to ascertain" without going to court, Rayfield said. No trial date has been set in either case.

According to Cox's official report, he was on patrol shortly after midnight on June 19, 2006, when he spotted Feher's 1995 Nissan pickup headed west on Northwest Grant Avenue. As Feher turned onto 27th Street, Cox noticed that the registration tags were improperly displayed on the pickup's license plate. Cox turned on the overhead lights as Feher parked in front of his house.

Cox reported that he smelled alcohol on Feher's breath and that Feher admitted having had two beers earlier that night. After administering field sobriety tests, Cox arrested Feher and took him to the Benton County Jail.

When a breath test showed no traces of alcohol, Cox asked Feher if he had taken any illegal drugs. Feher denied using drugs and agreed to submit a urine sample for analysis. He also agreed to be tested by a certified drug recognition expert, who concluded that Feher was not on drugs but was too tired to drive safely.

Feher, a 52-year-old registered nurse, said he's had no fallout at work because of the arrest. But he wonders what might happen if he left his longtime job to seek employment elsewhere.

"Every time I go in for a job, they're going to run a police check and this will come up," Feher said. "You may be hurt in ways you never realize."

Officer Cox made hundreds of DUII arrests in his six-year stint with the Corvallis Police Department, winning praise from his superiors and a statewide award for his energetic enforcement efforts.

The Noakes incident, however, ultimately cost him his job. An internal investigation concluded Cox had unlawfully arrested Noakes. Cox resigned Nov. 1, and he has since left the state.

City County Insurance Services is representing the city of Corvallis in both the Noakes and Feher lawsuits. A call to the insurer's general counsel was not returned by close of business Monday.

Bennett Hall can be reached at 758-9529 or bennett.hall@lee.net.