A mother of three in New York was charged with vehicular manslaughter after allegedly causing a fatal collision on Oct. 28. Police say that the woman’s blood-alcohol level was four times the legal limit when she was involved in a head-on collision that killed an elderly couple in Westchester County.
The alleged drunk driving accident took place in Hartsdale at about 2:15 p.m. when the woman was driving westbound on Hartsdale Avenue. Shortly before the accident, the woman had spent four hours at Mimi’s Bar and Grill, where police believe she was drinking alcohol. When the woman drove her minivan away from the restaurant, witnesses saw her swerving. The minivan then crashed into a white sedan about a half-mile down the road.
Several witnesses spoke to reporters after the crash, and one witness said that car accidents are a common occurrence on Hartsdale Avenue due to speeding. The accused woman’s next-door neighbor called her an ‘absolute sweetheart” and said that he was very surprised to hear about the accident. An 80-year-old man and 82-year-old woman were killed in the accident. The accused drunk driver sustained non-life threatening injuries.
A person who is accused of drunk driving after a fatal accident might argue that they were not under the influence of alcohol. If a breath or blood test indicates that a driver has an unusually high blood-alcohol level, the result could be evidence that the test was faulty. A criminal defense lawyer may be able to help an accused drunk driver argue that a breath test machine was in need of repair or a blood sample was not properly refrigerated.
Source: CBS New York, “Mother Of 3 Accused Of Driving Drunk, Causing Crash That Killed Couple In Westchester County,” Oct. 31, 2016
