A CCPS teacher pleads guilty to a misdemeanor DUI charge

By Rhonda Simmons

Published: July 22, 2008

An Eastern View High School math teacher and varsity cheerleading coach pleaded guilty in Culpeper County General District Court last week to driving under the influence of alcohol.
Nicholas Andrew Hanzivasilis, 23, of the 11200 block of Torrie Way in Bealeton, was arrested on the class 1 misdemeanor charge May 2 on Madison Road at 11:29 p.m., according to court records.
It was his first offense.
The judge sentenced Hanzivasilis to 30 days in jail but sus-pended the entire jail term.
His driver’s license was also suspended for a year with re-strictions.
Hanzivasilis is allowed to drive to and from work, court-ordered facilities and meetings, and is only allowed to use his vehicle during working hours. His 2007 Hyundai four-door vehicle is also equipped with interlock restriction, a device that prevents a car from starting if alcohol is detected on the driver’s breath.
His restricted license period started July 16 — the day he pleaded guilty in court — and concludes on July 15, 2009.
He paid a $250 fine and $191 in court fees.
Hanzivasilis, who earns $40,280 annually — began his career in Culpeper teaching math and coaching junior varsity cheerleaders at Culpeper County High School August 2007.

The arrest
According to court documents, Deputy G.K. Wyant of the Culpeper County Sheriff’s Office said she observed Hanzivasilis northbound on Madison Road May 2 as he swerved from the white fog line and crossed the double yellow solid lines twice.
During the traffic stop, Wyant said she smelled a “strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from the vehicle.”
That’s when she asked Hanzivasilis to get out of his vehicle.
“He used the driver’s side of the vehicle door for balance,” said Wyant, who administered four sobriety tests.
“He was unable to walk heel to toe,” Wyant said. “On the fourth step, he lost his balance and stumbled.”
Hanzivasilis’ blood alcohol content was .19, according to court documents. The legal limit in Virginia is .08.
It’s not the first time a Culpeper County Public School teacher has faced some sort of drug and/or alcohol-related charge within the last year.
A Warrenton judge sentenced former CCPS teacher Frank “Chip” Rea to a three-month jail term in January for felony drug charges stemming from his arrest June 2007.
Rea was a physical education and football coach at CCHS for one year.
He submitted his resignation last fall.
Michele Auville, a former first-grade teacher at Emerald Hill Elementary School, will face a grand jury in August for a felony charge of a controlled substance.
On May 31, Auville was riding in the passenger side of her Toy-ota when a deputy pulled the vehicle over for “going very slowly and swinging from side to side,” on Madison Road around 5:15 a.m.
Auville submitted her resignation to the School Board the next day.
This fall, Hanzivasilis transfers from CCHS to the county’s second high school, Eastern View as a math teacher and varsity cheerleading coach. According to CCPS Spokeswoman Marla McKenna, he is still employed.
Hanzivasilis is also an assistant manager at the Culpeper Recreation Club on Recreation Road in Culpeper and teaches classes at Zamora’s Boxing Gym. He could not be reached for comment.

Rhonda Simmons can be reached at 825-0771 ext. 125 or .