A Niles man’s rash of bad luck took an even worse turn on Friday, as he now must spend the next month in a Cass County jail cell for drunk driving.

Cass County Circuit Judge Michael Dodge sentenced Jeffery Ray Lee, 44, to 30 days in jail and 18 months of probation on Friday in Cass County court for operating a vehicle while intoxicated and for having an open container of alcohol while driving. Lee had pleaded guilty to these charges in an earlier appearance in the courtroom, on Nov. 24.

The charges stem from an incident that occurred on Nov. 3, when officers with the Cass County Sheriff’s Office responded to reports of a single-vehicle accident off Pine Lake Street, near Anderson Road in Niles. When the deputies arrived, they discovered Lee behind the wheel of a pickup truck that had gone off the roadway and down an embankment.

The officer noted that Lee appeared to be heavily intoxicated at the time, and took him into custody; a blood draw taken later that day confirmed the officer’s suspicion, with the report stating he had a .34 percent blood alcohol level.

“That’s pretty high. That’s a whopper,” Dodge said. “That’s reflective of quite a few beers in order to get to that level. It’s symptomatic of some pretty serious drinking issues.”

Lee’s arrest was his third for drunk driving, Dodge said.

Lee’s attorney, Gregory Feldman, said that his client’s alcohol addiction has begun to take over his life.

“It’s not only cost him a large amount of money and tied up a lot of his time, it’s put him in jeopardy of losing his job, losing his house and all the other trickle down effects that addiction and a subsequent jail sentence has,” Feldman said. “He knows its something he needs to get a handle on.”

Lee’s problems with drinking are compounded by those concerning his health, as his attorney pointed out that he was recently diagnosed with diverticulitis.

“With a .34 percent BAC, you’re not helping your health conditions at all,” Dodge said. “Probably the worst thing you could be doing is drinking alcohol. Who knows to which extent some of these health conditions, including your most recent diagnosis, have been made worse by drinking alcohol.”

Dodge said he would not object to Lee serving his the terms of jail sentence on work release.