On December 30, the Ephrata Police Department filed charges against Nikolas Gerhart, 39, of Leola, with Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol- General Impairment (M) and Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol- Highest Rate (M).  On November 27, 2025, Ephrata Police responded to Rettew Mill Road and Heritage Road for a male slumped over in a vehicle.  Police located Gerhart sleeping in his vehicle, the vehicle was in drive with the ignition on, and his foot on the brake.  As Gerhart began to wake up, he displayed signs of impairment, there were open containers of alcohol next to him and a case of beer behind his seat.  Gerhart was unable to perform standardized field sobriety tests and refused to submit to chemical testing.  Police obtained a search warrant for Gerhart’s whole blood, which was served and his blood was tested.  Testing determined that Gerhart’s blood contained .30% of ethyl alcohol.  Gerhart is presumed innocent.