CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — The Citrus County Sheriff's Office said a 66-year-old woman faces multiple charges after she was allegedly drunk driving while deputies chased her car.
According to the CCSO, deputies tried to stop the car of Brenda Evangelista Jenkins on Monday evening because she was suspected of being involved in a hit-and-run incident after a road rage altercation.
Deputies said when they turned on their lights, Jenkins hit the gas and accelerated to speeds of up to 90 miles per hour on Gulf to Lake Highway.
Jenkins allegedly drove erratically, sideswiped a car, hit another car near the intersection of W. Main Street and N. Pine Avenue, and then crashed into a crosswalk pole.
CCSO deputies said after the crash, Jenkins refused to get out of her car and blamed deputies for the crash. Deputies said Jenkins had "slurred speech, bloodshot eyes, and a strong smell of alcohol on her breath."
An open wine container was allegedly found in the car and the CCSO said Jenkins had a blood alcohol content of .251, more than three times the legal limit.
Jenkins faces charges of fleeing and eluding with disregard for safety, 2 counts of DUI with property damage, and leaving the scene of a crash with property damage.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued a consumer alert for replacement airbags that have killed at least three people in the past year. I-Team investigator Adam Walser discovered one victim was a young Florida mother whose family has filed a lawsuit alleging a counterfeit Chinese airbag exploded in her car and killed her.
