The Daily Local News, from Chester County, has reported that a woman pleaded guilty to a DUI-fueled crash - after leaving the scene as she didn't want to wait "around for the cops" and being admittedly "drunk" but "not trashed."
J.F., 21, of East Norristown, drove into a truck on Route 202 at approximately 4 a.m. on July 14. She proceeded to leave the scene on foot, in attempt to avoid confrontation by police.
On October 10 J.F. pleaded guilty to drunk driving, the unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and leaving the scene of an accident.
Route 202 is a well-traveled highway, and, the accident occurred in a work zone.
J.F., serving time in the Montgomery County Prison for violating her parole for retail theft, was brought to the Chester County Justice Center. She was ordered to serve seven days to six months more in prison for DUI and two more years of supervised probation.
Judge David Bortner, in accepting J.F.'s plea bargain, granted her parole - as J.F. had already completed one week of incarceration for the DUI charge.
J.F. will complete her extended sentence at Montgomery County.
The criminal complaint on J.F. states that officers were notified of the accident on the stretch of Route 202 north of Route 404 in East Whiteland. The driver of a tractor-trailer, M.H., spoke with Trooper K.K. at the scene and reported that he was rear-ended by a Volkswagen Beetle.
M.H. claimed that he spotted the Volkswagen before it struck his vehicle.
M.H. said that he pulled his vehicle out of traffic lanes and called 911. He then spotted a woman walking away from the center median - the Volkswagen was later found at the center median - and in an active construction zone.
M.H. stopped the woman to inquire as to whether she was injured, to which she allegedly responded, "So what if I am? I'm not waiting around for the cops." Then, per M.H., he witnessed the woman walk over to a hilly area.
He described the woman, and what she wore, to the trooper.
While Trooper K.K. was investigating, he got word that Trooper J.T. had taken a woman into custody that fit the description of the missing driver, just a little distance away on Route 401.
Once J.F. identified herself, Trooper J.T. ascertained that she was driving with a suspended license. He also noted that she appeared disheveled - as if she had been lying down in the woods - and she had a strong odor of alcohol on her breath.
When Trooper J.T. asked if she had been drinking, she said, "I'm not trashed, but I'm drunk." She proceeded to fail field sobriety tests and her blood alcohol proved to be twice the legal driving limit - .18 percent.
Police contacted J.F.'s mother and learned that the vehicle had been taken without permission.
Along with her sentencing and probation, J.F. has been ordered to maintain drug and alcohol counseling and complete 50 hours of service to the community.
Charges of DUI, DWI, OUI and OWI don't have to always result in incarceration, fines and loss of driving privileges. Contact a DUI attorney near you to best manage your case and necessary plea-bargaining.