A 31-year-old Illinois woman is facing a raft of charges after allegedly fleeing the scene of an accident in Riverside on Sept. 2 while under the influence of alcohol. The Brookfield resident has been charged with driving while under the influence of alcohol, leaving the scene of a traffic accident and failing to render aid or information following an accident. The incident took place in the parking lot of the Riverside Police Department facility on Riverside Road at approximately 6:53 p.m.
Police responded when a motorist who had been involved in an accident called to report a hit-and-run driver. The woman behind the wheel of the fleeing car had allegedly refused to stop after striking the caller’s vehicle while backing out of a parking spot at the police station. The caller told officers that the woman’s car was heading toward Ogden Avenue, and it was soon spotted by police and pulled over near the intersection of Plainfield Road and First Avenue in Lyons.
Officers at the scene say that they took the woman into custody after she failed a standardized field sobriety test. They claim that they became suspicious after detecting the odor of alcohol on the woman’s breath. According to reports, the woman told officers that she was returning home after attending a wedding and had no idea that she had been involved in a traffic accident.
Proving drunk driving charges beyond all reasonable doubt involves establishing that motorists were behind the wheel with blood alcohol levels of .08 percent or higher. Experienced criminal defense attorneys presented with facts like those in this case may point out that being involved in an accident, smelling of alcohol and having a poor recollection of recent events does not meet this threshold, and they could seek to have DUI charges dismissed when they are not supported by compelling toxicology evidence.