LAKELAND, Fla. — Deputies arrested a Polk County teacher after she left the scene of a crash on Thursday.
The Polk County Sheriff's office said Christina Dobbs Lee, 47, ran a red light, struck another car and drove home instead of stopping to aid the 30-year-old woman she hit shortly before 6 p.m. at the intersection of Knights Station Rd. and Galloway Rd. in Lakeland.
Deputies said a witness followed Lee, after the crash, and reported her tag number and the neighborhood she lived in to them. With the information provided, deputies were able to go to Lee's home to speak with her.
Lee told deputies, "I was driving northbound on Galloway Road North; I ran the red light and crashed into the other vehicle."
She also admitted that she had left the scene in her red Mazda SUV, which was parked inside her garage and had front-end damage to the front passenger side. She then told deputies that the abrasions on her arm were from the airbag deployment.
Lee was charged with leaving the scene of a crash with injuries without rendering aid and booked into the Polk County jail. She has since posted a $1,000 bond and has been released.
"This is yet another reminder that drivers have a moral and legal responsibility to stop if involved in a crash. And, if you are able and it is safe to do so, render aid," Sheriff Grady Judd said. "Ms. Lee turned this crash from a traffic citation to a 3rd degree felony with one bad decision."
The Polk County Sheriff's office told ABC Action News Lee is a drama teacher at Kathleen High School in Lakeland.
