ATLANTA -- A north Georgia man faces DUI charges after deputies said he drove drunk in his motorized scooter. The man’s attorney said it was a wheelchair his client was in and he believes the legislature didn’t intend for wheelchairs to be covered under the DUI statute.

Robert Pruett said his motorized scooter, which he called a wheelchair, is not a vehicle and he said that’s why Dawson County deputies shouldn’t have charged him with DUI.

Pruett has cerebral palsy and has no use of his legs. He said he didn’t think he was drunk and if anything, he should have been charged with being drunk in public.

“For his safety and the safety of others I made the arrest in that situation,” said Dawson County Investigator Jimmi Smith.

Investigators said Pruett was on his scooter on the wrong side of the road with a 12-pack of beer in his cart. A couple of beers were missing. A breathalyzer test was performed.

“So he blew a .125,” said Smith. Pruett was arrested. Investigators said a cart like Pruett’s is covered under the state’s DUI laws. Pruett’s attorney, Rob McNeill, disputed that by asking, “Did the legislature intend for wheelchairs to be covered under the motor vehicle code?” He thinks not.

Pruett said he no longer drinks and drives in his scooter. “I’m scared to,” he said.

Pruett will be arraigned on the DUI charge next Tuesday. He could get three years in prison because he was on probation for another offense.