Waukee football coach had BAC nearly triple the legal limit when arrested on OWI charge

QChawks

Heisman
Dec 17, 2022
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impressive idiot



WAUKEE, Iowa — The head coach of the Waukee High School football team had a blood alcohol content nearly three times the legal limit to drive when he was arrested Friday night, court documents reveal.

Gabe Bakker, 44, is charged with
operating while under the influence – first offense, following an incident Friday in Waukee. The criminal complaint states that officers with the Waukee Police Department responded to E. Hickman Road and S. Warrior Lane around 9:13 p.m. after receiving a report about a reckless driver.

An officer found a vehicle matching the description given, a black Ford F-150, on Park Drive. The complaint said the driver, Bakker, admitted he’d been drinking at a bar in Grimes and had driven back to Waukee from the bar. Bakker also allegedly told police he felt the effects of the alcohol.

Field sobriety tests were performed, during which the officer observed clues of impairment, the complaint stated. Bakker refused a preliminary breath sample, according to the document, but submitted a breath sample to the DataMaster testing instrument, which resulted in a BAC reading of .23. The legal limit for operating a vehicle in Iowa is .08.

Bakker was booked into the Dallas County Jail and released early Saturday morning. Online court records do not show when his next court appearance will be.

WHO 13 reached out to the Waukee School District for comment on Bakker’s arrest. The district issued this statement:
 
Jun 1, 2026
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That's a bit harsh considering it was outside the school and didn't involve students.

I suspect he gets some sort of suspension, tho.
I don’t think so. He’s supposed to be a leader/role model for many 15-18 year old males.
If anything, I don’t feel like we are harsh enough to automatically fire a coach that does this. Teach kids about right and wrong and teach them about the effects of doing the wrong thing. The slap on a wrist world we live in is a joke.
 

hawkbirch

All-Conference
Nov 24, 2015
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I think firing him is harsh unless he tries to deny or make excuses for his actions. If he understands his mistake and works to correct it, it's an excellent opportunity for his players to see him be accountable and do better. Kids don't seem to have that modeled for them very often so it's nice for them to see how it works.
 
Jun 1, 2026
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I think firing him is harsh unless he tries to deny or make excuses for his actions. If he understands his mistake and works to correct it, it's an excellent opportunity for his players to see him be accountable and do better. Kids don't seem to have that modeled for them very often so it's nice for them to see how it works.
This is Waukee we are talking about. Not the likes of Des Moines Roosevelt or similar schools.
 

CRazzle

All-Conference
Jun 5, 2025
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I don’t think so. He’s supposed to be a leader/role model for many 15-18 year old males.
If anything, I don’t feel like we are harsh enough to automatically fire a coach that does this. Teach kids about right and wrong and teach them about the effects of doing the wrong thing. The slap on a wrist world we live in is a joke.
This sounds like a future Fox News segment appearence.

"What fired me from coaching? Woke."
 

QChawks

Heisman
Dec 17, 2022
11,949
25,028
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the dude was THREE TIMES OVER THE LIMIT

I could see a little grace for blowing a .10 but the guy was hammered drunk and is lucky he didn't kill someone

fire his arse!

he has zero business leading a group of young men
 
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Jun 1, 2026
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Hey now, we can't have higher standards for high school football coaches than we do for our own governors :)
Because you would have one less thing to cry about?
I’m sure one of you would know, but did she get her owi(s) while governor? If she did, she should have gotten the boot. She is supposed to be the leader of our state and clearly could have afforded someone to drive her around while intoxicated. If she received them before being governor, I don’t have as big of an issue of her receiving the position with the owi in her past. Much like I’m not against this coach ever coaching somewhere else again.

Our High School athletic director actually had an OWI before becoming our athletic director and one while being our athletic director. He should have been fired but they kept him on. Student athletes got away with a lot more than they should have because how were you going to punish the student for underage drinking when the athletic director didn’t get punished for a similar offense.
CSB I know.
 

Finance85

All-Conference
Dec 16, 2022
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Did his team win?

Edit - I just looked it up and apparently the season opener is this coming weekend.

Statement from the school district -

“We are aware that Waukee High School teacher and head football coach Gabe Bakker was arrested and charged with first-offense operating while intoxicated. He promptly self-reported the arrest to the District in accordance with Board policy.

In an email to the football team on Saturday, Bakker acknowledged the seriousness of the situation, apologized for any disruption it may cause, and shared his intention to navigate the matter respectfully and responsibly.

The District concluded its investigation over the weekend in accordance with Board policy and personnel procedures. Because this is an ongoing legal process and a confidential personnel matter, we cannot provide further details at this time.

We expect all our staff members to serve as role models for students and live our core values, and we take this incident seriously. Our priority is supporting our students as the school year begins.”
 
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NorthernHawkeye

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People with a proclivity to drink heavily will likely have a more lenient view on punishment.
 

Ferentzin04

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Jun 9, 2025
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impressive idiot



WAUKEE, Iowa — The head coach of the Waukee High School football team had a blood alcohol content nearly three times the legal limit to drive when he was arrested Friday night, court documents reveal.

Gabe Bakker, 44, is charged with
operating while under the influence – first offense, following an incident Friday in Waukee. The criminal complaint states that officers with the Waukee Police Department responded to E. Hickman Road and S. Warrior Lane around 9:13 p.m. after receiving a report about a reckless driver.

An officer found a vehicle matching the description given, a black Ford F-150, on Park Drive. The complaint said the driver, Bakker, admitted he’d been drinking at a bar in Grimes and had driven back to Waukee from the bar. Bakker also allegedly told police he felt the effects of the alcohol.

Field sobriety tests were performed, during which the officer observed clues of impairment, the complaint stated. Bakker refused a preliminary breath sample, according to the document, but submitted a breath sample to the DataMaster testing instrument, which resulted in a BAC reading of .23. The legal limit for operating a vehicle in Iowa is .08.

Bakker was booked into the Dallas County Jail and released early Saturday morning. Online court records do not show when his next court appearance will be.

WHO 13 reached out to the Waukee School District for comment on Bakker’s arrest. The district issued this statement:


 

PalmettoTiger1

Heisman
Jan 24, 2009
13,124
13,080
113
impressive idiot



WAUKEE, Iowa — The head coach of the Waukee High School football team had a blood alcohol content nearly three times the legal limit to drive when he was arrested Friday night, court documents reveal.

Gabe Bakker, 44, is charged with
operating while under the influence – first offense, following an incident Friday in Waukee. The criminal complaint states that officers with the Waukee Police Department responded to E. Hickman Road and S. Warrior Lane around 9:13 p.m. after receiving a report about a reckless driver.

An officer found a vehicle matching the description given, a black Ford F-150, on Park Drive. The complaint said the driver, Bakker, admitted he’d been drinking at a bar in Grimes and had driven back to Waukee from the bar. Bakker also allegedly told police he felt the effects of the alcohol.

Field sobriety tests were performed, during which the officer observed clues of impairment, the complaint stated. Bakker refused a preliminary breath sample, according to the document, but submitted a breath sample to the DataMaster testing instrument, which resulted in a BAC reading of .23. The legal limit for operating a vehicle in Iowa is .08.

Bakker was booked into the Dallas County Jail and released early Saturday morning. Online court records do not show when his next court appearance will be.

WHO 13 reached out to the Waukee School District for comment on Bakker’s arrest. The district issued this statement:

Saw where down in Naples Florida High School at Barron Collier was suspended from coaching for a year and fined $5000 for over the top recruiting and then followed it up with DUI and failure to blow test for drunk driving.

Bad picture all around for these high school coaches
 
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