Suspected drunk driver crashes outside south Sacramento California Highway Patrol office
California Highway Patrol officers are on the lookout for drunk drivers during a maximum enforcement period for Memorial Day weekend, but they didn’t have to look far when a woman crashed outside their South Sacramento office early Sunday.
Joannie Marie Sanchez told officers she yawned and struck a curb after leaving the Oasis Inn next door to the CHP’s South Sacramento area office on Mack Road shortly before 1:15 a.m. Sanchez, 26, then struck two concrete spotlight housings and two signs, resulting in property damage outside the CHP building, officers said.
No injuries were reported.
Officers said they conducted a DUI investigation after detecting a strong odor of alcohol on Sanchez’s breath. They walked her into the CHP offices, where she underwent a chemical blood test, officers said.
Sanchez was subsequently arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, driving with a suspended license and operating a vehicle without an ignition interlock device, authorities said.
The CHP said Sanchez could not be booked into the Sacramento County jail due to COVID-19 restrictions, so she was cited and released.
This story was originally published May 24, 2020 at 5:57 PM.
