To protect and swerve.

A Florida police officer was hit with drunk driving raps this week after driving his police cruiser in full uniform with an open beer in the center console, authorities said.

Oscar Mayorga, 25, of the Apopka Police Department was pulled over after driving erratically in his official vehicle by a member of the Eustis Police Department, Local 10 reported.

A local resident called 911 after spotting the police car running stop signs and careening across the road.

Slurring his speech, Mayorga, a five-year veteran, told his colleagues that he was on his way to work and was not feeling well, cops said.

The responding officer spotted an open beer can in the cruiser’s center console and caught a heavy whiff of booze coming from inside the car.

Mayorga initially claimed to have not been drinking and said he took pain medication for seizures.

But he finally admitted to drinking three tall tans of beer before hitting the road to begin his shift, according to the report.

Mayorga’s blood-alcohol level registered at .391 — nearly five times the legal limit.

His department confirmed that he was due to work that evening and he has since been placed on administrative leave.