Deerfield police recently arrested the son of famed Chicago Bears football coach Mike Ditka — Michael P. Ditka — near his apartment complex for allegedly driving while under the influence of alcohol.

The coach’s son and namesake denies the charge.

“I was not driving a car,” said Ditka, 49. “I was parked. The keys weren’t even in the ignition. I plan on pleading not guilty.”

He also claimed police unfairly targeted him because of his famous name.

“If my name was Joe Smith, this would not have happened,” Ditka said.

According to a Deerfield police report, at about midnight on April 20 a police officer saw a black Hummer with its headlights on, running in the parking lot of the Deerfield Village Centre Apartments, in the 600 block of Deerfield Road.  The officer then observed the Hummer drive into the rear parking lot of West Deerfield Township, 601 Deerfield Road, before turning off its headlights.

The officer approached the Hummer to find Ditka, who lives in the 600 block of Deerfield Road, sitting the driver’s seat and another person in the passenger seat.

When Ditka exited the vehicle, the officer allegedly smelled a strong odor of alcohol, the report said.

The officer also alleged in the report that Ditka’s eyes were bloodshot, and he had slurred speech.

The officer alleges in the report that Ditka struggled to perform a field sobriety test. A preliminary breath test allegedly indicated that Ditka’s blood alcohol concentration was 0.189 percent. The legal limit in Illinois is .08 percent.

According to the report, the passenger allegedly told police that Ditka had been at the wheel when it had pulled into the West Deerfield Township parking lot.

Dikta was taken to the Deerfield police station where he declined to take another breath test. He was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and released on $100 cash bond.

Ditka is scheduled for an appearance at the Lake County courthouse at 9 a.m. on May 11.

Ditka said in an interview that he was sitting in his vehicle in his apartment parking lot with a friend after walking from Townhouse Kitchen and Bar, 695 Deerfield Road, which is near his home. He claims he didn’t drink at the bar but acknowledges he had a couple of drinks earlier that day.

He had entered his car to have a cigarette since he didn’t want to smoke in his apartment. He also needed to make a phone call, he said. He said the vehicle was not turned on, the keys were not in the ignition, and that he had not driven the Hummer.

Deerfield police did not respond to a request for comment regarding Ditka’s allegation that he was targeted because of his name.