A Rhode Island woman was arrested Sunday on charges of drunken driving and child endangerment after she was reportedly seen driving across the road on Route 2 in East Hartford, nearly hitting other drivers and guardrails.
According to Connecticut State Police, just after 5:20 p.m., police received multiple 911 calls about a driver on Route 2 East near Exit 5 who may be impaired.
The driver of the vehicle, a white Nissan Rogue, reportedly couldn’t stay in one lane and eventually pulled over to the shoulder of the highway where a good Samaritan stopped and took her keys, state police said.
When officers responded, the person with the keys claimed the driver went all the way across the road and almost hit several vehicles and guardrails before stopping, state police said. Troopers approaching the Rogue found a woman in the backseat of the vehicle with a minor child in her arms. She was identified as 37-year-old Javglad Garcia of Providence, Rhode Island, state police said.
Garcia admitted to being the driver and said she stopped because she couldn’t see properly, state police said. Troopers claimed she looked bad while they spoke to her because her eyes were watery and her speech was so slurred that it was sometimes difficult to understand what she was saying, state police said. They also allegedly found two cartons of wine drinks on the floor of the vehicle behind the driver’s seat.
State police said Garcia denied drinking or using drugs before driving. She allegedly failed the field sobriety test and was taken into custody.
Garia was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, risk of injury to a child and reckless endangerment in the second degree. She was later released on a $5,000 bond and will appear in Manchester Superior Court on December 13.
State police said the child in the vehicle was not injured and was turned over to a guardian. Garcia’s car was towed.
