2 Strange Weekend Drunken Driving Cases Keep Vernon Police Busy

VERNON, CT — Vernon police had to contend with back-to-back strange drunken driving incidents in the Vernon Circle area of town as Saturday night turned into Sunday morning.

At 11:21 p.m. Saturday, police were dispatched to the Wood-N-Tap restaurant at 236 Hartford Turnpike after receiving a report that a "tall white man" was trying to get into the building.

When police arrived, they located the man, who was sitting in his vehicle and claiming that he was looking for help after the vehicle broke down, according to an arrest report.

The 24-year-old from Fiskdale. MA, then failed one part of a field sobriety test and refused to complete the rest of it, according to an arrest repot. He was then charged with driving under the influence, police said.

At 1:31 a.m., now Sunday, police found a gray 2012 Dodge Ram 1500 Truck stopped on a grass embankment at the intersection of Hartford Turnpike and Talcottville Road, according to an arrest report. A 32-year-old New York woman was found passed out behind the wheel of the truck and, after waking, she began speaking incoherently to officers at the scene.

The woman refused transport to an area hospital at the scene and then failed sobriety tests and was charged with driving under the influence, police said.

The woman could not reach anyone to pick her up and, while in a holding cell at the Vernon Police Department, she began making comments about hurting herself and repeatedly banged her head against a brick wall, according to an arrest report. She was taken to Rockville General Hospital from police headquarters, according to an arrest report.