Teenager in North Carolina accused of DWI charges after car accident
Police say that a 17-year-old woman admitted to drinking shots with friends before she was involved in a car accident. Law enforcement claims that the woman said the she and her friends were drinking when a parent called who was apparently upset because the teens were not in school. Apparently, the woman accused of underage drinking and driving told police that she and a friend got in the young woman’s car to return to Gaston College.
Authorities claim that the young woman lost control of her car en route to school. Police say that the car went off the road while the teenager was trying to negotiate a curve. The car dropped into a culvert, and North Carolina state troopers say that the car went airborne for roughly 30 feet.
The car landed and the rolled until it crashed into a brick house set roughly 300 feet from the road. Sources say that nobody was inside the home when the car rolled into the home, crashing into a bedroom of the house.
The 17-year-old Lincolnton, North Carolina, woman accused of driving the car was taken to Gaston Memorial hospital for treatment. After her release from the hospital, law enforcement arrested her on suspicion of drunk driving. She was later released into the custody of her parents.
Her friend was also injured in the rollover crash. The friend was admitted to the same hospital.
The Gaston Gazette reports that the teenager has been charged with reckless driving and DWI for the crash. She has a court date scheduled for July 20 on the current charges. The teen’s legal plight may be complicated by a prior court appearance.
The newspaper suggests that the teen was on deferred prosecution for underage possession of alcohol at the time of the recent crash. A deferred prosecution is one potential solution to a first-time criminal offense that can, if completed successfully, allow an accused offender to avoid having a permanent record for a conviction.
Source: Gaston Gazette, “Teen admits to drinking liquor before crashing into house (updated),” Diane Turbyfill, June 1, 2012
Tags: Accident, accused, After, Carolina, Charges, North, teenager