Belleville School Board Member Found Guilty Of DUI: Report

BELLEVILLE, NJ — Nearly a year after winning re-election to the Belleville Board of Education, a trustee has been found guilty of driving under the influence near a local school, a report says.

Erika Jacho, 41, was allegedly found sleeping and slumped over the steering wheel of her car last year at 12:50 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 21 near the 500-block of Joralemon Street. Her car was parked and running, and partially blocking a lane of the roadway, which is located within 1,000 feet of Belleville Public School No. 7, police previously told NJ.com.

Jacho was re-elected to the Belleville Board of Education in November 2020, less than two weeks after her arrest. Her term lasts until 2024.

• See related article: Belleville School Board Member Charged With DWI, Report Says

After a series of trial postponements, a municipal judge in Verona found Jacho guilty of operating a motor vehicle under the influence and refusing a chemical test for alcohol on Wednesday, NJ.com reported.

The judge ruling on the case cited video surveillance of the police traffic stop, which showed Jacho berating arresting officers and demanding that they contact a town council member on her behalf.

Jacho testified that she was suffering what felt like a “panic attack” during the encounter, and that the smell of alcohol the officers allegedly detected was only hand sanitizer.

Jacho was ordered to pay more than $1,000 in fines, and her license was suspended until she can get an ignition interlock device installed in her car, NJ.com reported.

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