Civilian Snatches Keys From Drunken Driver On Route 2 Shoulder: PD

EAST HARTFORD, CT — A civilian snatched the keys from a suspected drunken driver with a child in the car Sunday evening on Route 2 before state police arrived to arrest her, authorities said.

State police said they were alerted to an erratic driver on Route 2 eastbound in East Hartford at 5:21 p.m. Sunday by multiple 911 calls. The white Nissan Rogue, was failing to maintain its lane several times, but eventually pulled over on the shoulder, state police said. One of the callers pulled over along with the Rogue and took the keys from the driver, state police said.

The civilian gave the vehicle keys to state troopers and told them the Rogue had been "all over the road" and nearly hit other vehicles and guardrails, state police said.

A woman was in the Rogue and had moved to the back seat and was holding a child, state police said. She was identified by her Rhode Island driver's license as 37-year-old Javglad Garcia, of Providence, according to an incident report. Garcia claimed she could not see well, but showed signs of impairment, including watery eyes and slurred speech to the point that troopers had a difficult time understanding her, according to an incident report.

Troopers observed two "packages of wine beverages" on the floor of the vehicle, directly behind the driver's seat, but Garcia said she had not been drinking. She failed field sobriety tests, however, state police said.

Garcia was arrested and transported to Troop H, where she was charged with driving under the influence, risk of injury to a child and second-degree reckless endangerment.

The child in Garcia's care at the time of her arrest, whose age is not listed in either an arrest or incident report, was not injured, and a Trooper later transported the child to Troop H to await a guardian, according to an incident report.

Garcia was later released from custody on a $5,000 bond and is scheduled to appear at Manchester Superior Court on Dec. 13, records show.