'He Was Acting Really Weird': Quick-Thinking Students Call 911 On Intoxicated Driving Instructor
CENTEREACH, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) - A driving instructor is under arrest after a crash.
According to police, Russell Cohen was giving a driving lesson to four students Saturday at 11 a.m.
One of the students said they first got concerned due to the comments he made as they entered the car.
"He was overly complementing us. He was just, he was acting really weird," student Lila Mabanta told CBS2's Carolyn Gusoff.
After the driver hit the curb twice, they managed to convince him they were hungry and to pull in at a McDonald's in Centereach, Lila said.
When they got out of the car, they called 911, police said. The students stayed at the McDonald's and eventually Cohen drove off.
He rear-ended another car on Route 25 at 11:45 a.m., according to police.
The driver of the other car, a 29-year-old Shoreham woman, was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Cohen, 58, was charged with aggravated DWI and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
"I'm very, very thankful that they all thought to get out as soon as they saw that McDonald's," Lila's mother Carla Mabanta said. "And that they're safe. That's the most important thing. They weren't taken, they're all safe and they're all here to talk about it.