By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – State Sen. Cam Ward’s August court date for a drunken driving charge has been pushed back by about a month at the request of his attorney, according to Alabaster Municipal Court records.

Ward, R-Alabaster, originally was scheduled to appear in Municipal Court on Aug. 12, but is now set to appear in court on Sept. 9. Alabaster Municipal Court is held at City Hall at 1953 Municipal Way.

The Alabama Legislature currently is in a special session in Montgomery, which is set to end on or before Aug. 11.

The Alabaster Police Department arrested Ward and charged him with one count of driving under the influence of alcohol shortly before 1 p.m. on July 1 after the department received a report of a potentially drunken driver on Alabama 119, according to Alabaster Police Chief Curtis Rigney.

Rigney said the officer pulled Ward over at Warrior Park on Thompson Road and said Ward “exhibited signs of intoxication.” The officer then performed several field sobriety tests on Ward, which he failed, Rigney said.

Ward was then placed under arrest on the DUI charge and transported to the Alabaster Police Department jail. He was later transported to the Shelby County Jail with a $1,000 bond. He was transported back to the Alabaster jail early on July 2, where he was released on bond at 5:21 a.m.

Shortly after he was released from jail, Ward issued a public apology and said he planned to seek professional assistance to combat his alcohol problems.

“My failure at dealing with stress led me to make incredibly reckless decisions. I recognize that I used alcohol as a crutch,” Ward wrote in a statement on July 2. “I was very wrong and deeply apologize to my family, friends and constituents. I plan on seeking professional assistance immediately.”

On July 27, Ward said he had enrolled in substance abuse counseling, and said he was “getting better every day.”

Ward has been serving District 14 in the Alabama Senate since 2010. Before he was elected to the Senate seat, Ward served two terms in the Alabama House of Representatives.