Drunk Driving Mom Faces Trial, Turned In By Daughter
SOUTHFIELD (WWJ) - A Southfield mom will stand trial after her 9-year-old daughter slipped a bank teller a note this week, claiming that her mother was drunk.
WWJ's Vickie Thomas reports that 49-year old Latanya Evans, in court Thursday, was surrounded by family as she waived her right to a preliminary exam.
Evans' older daughter, 24-year old Jessica Lenyard, spoke on behalf of the family.
"You know, nobody is perfect. My mom, she is a good person. She is a good mother. If she wasn't, she wouldn't have so much support.
The younger sister remains custody of her father, who picked her up at the bank last Friday.
"My little sister's doing fine. She wants to be back with her mom, so me and my older sister, we have to support my mom so that my sister can get her wish," she said.
Evans was stopped, near the bank, by a Southfield police officer who reported she smelled of alcohol and had slurred speech. She failed a sobriety test and breathalyzer.
Evans' attorney Amy Bowen Krane told the judge that after her client posted bond, she was released directly into an in-patient treatment program.
"She knew that she had a problem, and she knew that most importantly she had to protect her daughter, and she tought her how to make that happen. That's exactly what transpired here... She had always told her minor daughter if she ever felt unsafe to let somebody know," Bowen Krane said.
Secretary of State records show that Evans has had numerous drunk-driving offenses.
