Sheriff: Drunk Teen Who Hit Patrol Car Was 3X Legal Limit
COMMERCE TWP. (WWJ) - The Oakland County Sheriff's Office said a teenager who was responsible for a hit-and-run accident with a patrol car had a blood alcohol content three times the legal limit when she was arrested.
Sheriff's Deputies say the 18-year-old West Bloomfield Township woman was released on bond Saturday pending a warrant for "Super Drunk Law" violation and leaving the scene of an accident.
Investigators say a deputy was assisting a motorist involved in a hit-and-run accident on Union Lake Road just before 1 a.m. Saturday in Commerce Township. The deputy was off the roadway with the patrol car's overhead lights activated, when a dark-colored SUV traveling northbound struck the marked patrol vehicle, causing damage to the right front fender, right front tire and rim, control arm and front suspension -- rendering the patrol vehicle un-drivable.
The responsible vehicle fled the scene and continued driving. The deputy, who was not in the vehicle at the time of impact, was not injured.
Police later located the SUV and the driver on a side street south of Commerce Road with visible damage to the vehicle's right front. After talking to the woman, police suspected she was intoxicated and administered a Breathalyzer test. Police say the woman's BAC was .24. The legal limit in Michigan is .08.
Under the state's tougher "super drunk" law, which is aimed at drivers whose BAC is at least two times the legal limit, offenders face double the jail time, along with bigger fines — estimated at $8,000, along with mandatory alcohol treatment and losing driving privileges for 45 days. Additionally, offenders are forced to buy an on-board breathalyzer, which prevents the car from starting if the driver has had one too many.
