Danbury Man Had Unrestrained Baby In Lap Prior To DUI Arrest: State Police

DANBURY, CT — A Danbury man whose blood alcohol content was later measured at nearly double the legal limit was seen with an unrestrained 1-month-old baby in his lap just prior to his arrest on I-84 over the weekend, according to Connecticut State Police.

Dario Marcatoma-Marcatoma, 22, faces several charges including risk of injury to a child, state police said in a news release.

On May 9 at approximately 6:15 p.m., an off-duty trooper was traveling on I-84 westbound in Danbury near Exit 8 when he observed a tan Chevrolet Equinox SUV with no visible rear plate failing to maintain its lane, state police said.

The Trooper activated its emergency lights to initiate a traffic stop after seeing the vehicle swerve between the right shoulder and right lane, but the driver, later identified as Marcatoma-Marcatoma, failed to stop and continued in the right lane at approximately 15 mph, before going into the left lane at a low speed, according to police.

The Trooper placed their cruiser into park and approached the Equinox on foot and instructed the driver to place the vehicle into park, to which Marcatoma-Marcatoma said he did not speak English, state police said.

"The Trooper subsequently placed the vehicle into park and secured the vehicle keys to prevent the operator from fleeing. The Trooper observed that the male operator was holding a one-month-old infant child in his lap, unrestrained," state police noted. "The Trooper also observed at this time that the operator was exhibiting clear signs of impairment. The investigation later determined that the operator did not have a valid driver's license and that the vehicle was not registered or insured."

Additional first responders arrived at the scene, including a Spanish speaking unit. EMS was requested to evaluate the unrestrained baby, whose father was determined to be Marcatoma-Marcatoma, state police said.

"Upon arrival of EMS personnel, Marcatoma-Marcatoma refused to let go of the infant child to allow EMS to evaluate her. Simultaneously, the infant child's mother had arrived on scene," state police said. "The child's mother explained that Marcatoma-Marcatoma had taken their child from her crib and left the residence. The child's mother explained that she was concerned for their child's safety as she believed that Marcatoma-Marcatoma was intoxicated."

Marcatoma-Marcatoma was told he needed to surrender custody of the baby for medical evaluation, and he again refused to do so, prompting police to take control of his wrists while a CSP sergeant gained control of the baby, state police said.

The baby was then turned over to the custody of the mother, who accompanied EMS personnel to an area hospital to have the child evaluated, state police noted. Marcatoma-Marcatoma was then arrested without further incident.

Marcatoma-Marcatoma failed to perform standardized field sobriety testing at Troop A. He was charged with:

• Failure to use rear-facing car seat- child under 2 years
• Operating/parking an unregistered motor vehicle
• Illegal operation of a motor vehicle without minimum insurance
• Illegal operation of a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol/drugs
• Failure to maintain proper lane- limited access highway
• Operating a motor vehicle without a license
• Risk of injury to a child
• Interfering with an officer/resisting
• First-degree reckless endangerment

Marcatoma-Marcatoma was held on a $75,000 bond. He was scheduled to appear at Danbury Superior Court Monday.