A man was charged with a DUI after being pulled over, despite a breathalyzer showing a blood-alcohol content of 0.000.

Jessie Thornton, 64, has been pulled over repeatedly in Surprise, Arizona. Police told him they could tell he was drunk just by looking at him. Now he's charging the police with harrassment.

Most recently, Thornton was arrested for a DUI, despite having absolutely nothing in his system. He had injuries and a scheduled hip surgery that police ignored during the arrest, telling him to "stop whining".

Thornton was pulled over for crossing a white line. "An officer walked up and he said 'I can tell you're driving DUI by looking in your eyes.' I take my glasses off and he says, 'You've got bloodshot eyes," Thornton said.

In the evenings, Thornton runs errands and goes to the gym. And because his eyes were bloodshot after a late-night swim, police allegedly thought he was drunk.

"I said, 'I've been swimming at LA Fitness,' and he says, 'I think you're DUI ... we're going to do a sobriety test.' I said, 'OK, but I got bad knees and a bad hip with surgery in two days.'"

Officers conducted sobriety tests, but Thronton had a BAC of 0.000. They then evaluated him for drug use.

'Yes, I do the breathalyzer and it comes back zero, zero, zero,' said Mr Thornton.

While in custody, a drug recognition expert tested him. "After he did all the tests, he says, 'I would never have arrested you, you show no signs of impairment.'"

"I've been stopped 10 times in Surprise and given four tickets, it's amazing," he added. He was released, but his car was impounded for three days, and he is now suing the police department. He believes it was based on race.

"It was driving while black," he proclaimed. "I just don't want any of this to happen to somebody else," he said.

And the problems haven't stopped. "I then get this message that my license is being suspended and I have to take some sort of drinking class or something," he said.