Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason was passenger of accused drunken driver

Prosecutor Bill Mason, the top enforcer of justice in Cuyahoga County, was a passenger in a car early last week when the driver -- Mason's campaign treasurer -- was pulled over and charged with drunken driving in Seven Hills.

Police gave Mason a courtesy ride home while they took his friend, Parma City Councilman Tom Regas, to the police station for booking. Regas failed a roadside sobriety test after being pulled over at 1:19 a.m. on Dec. 30. He refused to submit to a breath alcohol test, resulting in an automatic one-year license suspension.

No police report identifies Mason as the passenger, but when a reporter knocked on his door Friday night to explain that a Seven Hills police sergeant had named him as the passenger, he acknowledged his presence.

"I was the passenger in the car," he said. "I have nothing else to say."