As reported by KDLG from Alaska's Bristol Bay, a woman involved in a DUI wreck two years ago has admitted her guilt. The woman was an employee at Dillingham's SAFE women's shelter and had been driving a SAFE vehicle, though not authorized to do so, when she caused a head-on collision that resulted in injury to herself and others.
B.Y.'s blood alcohol level proved to be two ½ times over the legal limit to drive, .202%, following the January 2012 accident. After testing, marijuana and oxycodone were also found in her system.
She swerved between lanes before causing the crash in front of the boat harbor. Several people were injured.
B.Y., 33, has been ordered to serve a three-day jail sentence.
At the time of the January 27, 2012, collision first responders had to work quickly to insure victims didn't suffer frostbite as well as other injuries. The weather was reportedly so cold that their plastic equipment froze and they were forced to extricate the victims from their cars manually.
Attorney Myron Angstrom represented B.Y. in the case. Angstrom was ready to argue that his client was not at fault for the accident. Instead, as the accident occurred in her lane of Kanakanak Road, he alleged that the other driver had caused the crash.
However, according to the police, when the other driver saw B.Y. enter his lane, coming from the opposite direction, he swerved into her original lane to avoid her. When she swerved back into her lane she then collided head on into the other driver.
Prosecutors dropped six counts of felony assault, part of the original charges against B.Y., to get the DUI guilty plea. Another misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence of controlled substances – namely the marijuana and oxycodone – was also dismissed.
After B.Y. posted bail following her arrest she proceeded to violate the conditions of her parole three times – she was caught possessing oxycodone without a prescription during one violation. With her deal in place two of the VCR charges were dropped. In pleading guilty to the third VCR B.Y. was sentenced to 30 days in jail.
The jail sentence, all 33 days, will begin sometime after April according to Judge Vanessa White. B.Y. had requested the postponement and the judge allowed it.
A civil lawsuit was filed in the accident and had named SAFE women's shelter as a defendant. G.B., the Executive Director at SAFE, said that the claim had since been settled and their insurance company had agreed to pay for the medical costs of the injured parties. However, B.Y., who suffered a knee injury in the accident, had not been authorized to use the shelter's vehicle for personal business at the time of the crash.
Following the accident SAFE fired B.Y.
Contact a DUI attorney if you have been charged with DUI, DWI, OUI or OWI. Only an experienced attorney can help you settle on the best plea deal before you enter a plea.