Drunk Woman Strikes School Bus at Almost DOUBLE THE LEGAL LIMIT (0.15% BAC)

On December 6, 2022 around 3:42 PM, Officer Jeffrey Williams with the Pasippany-Troy Hills Police Department responded to a motor vehicle accident in the area of Troy Road and Mazdabrook Road. The accident involved a 2022 BMW 740, a 2012 Chevy Equinox, and a 2015 school bus. The crash report states that the school bus was driving south on Baldwin Road and stopped at an intersection to turn left onto Troy Road. Around this time, the BMW driver veered to the left, struck the school bus before striking a guardrail, and bounced off the guardrail and struck the Chevy Equinox head-on. The school bus had 10 children on board, but none of them were injured.
As Officer Williams arrived on scene, he was informed that a female in a gray jacket had left the scene and walked towards Care One. He quickly located the female nearby, who was identified as Cristin, and he brought her back to the accident scene. He instructed her to sit in his patrol car as the officers investigated the accident. As he was speaking her, he detected the odor of alcohol and observed other indicators of impairment. Cristin admitted to consuming vodka before driving. After Officer Williams interviewed the driver of the school bus as well as the driver of the Chevy Equinox, he informed the other officers that this was probably going to be a DWI case.
Since it was raining, Officer Williams planned to transport Cristin back to the Parsippany-Troy Hills Police Department and perform field sobriety exercises in the sally port. However, Sergeant Carlos Silva instructed him to perform the exercises on scene. As Officer Williams was speaking with the other officers, Captain John Wieners was watching over Cristin and she told him that she was currently going through a divorce. Officer Williams returned to his patrol car transported Cristin to a safe place to perform the field sobriety exercises as Captain Wieners assisted.
The first exercise was the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test, and Officer Williams observed the lack of smooth pursuit, distinct and sustained nystagmus at maximum deviation, and the onset of nystagmus prior to 45 degrees. The second exercise was the Walk and Turn test and Cristin did not touch heel-to-toe on each step and failed to keep her hands at her sides. The final exercise was the One Leg Stand test, and Cristin failed to raise her foot in the proper fashion while putting her foot down multiple times.
Based on the car accident, the odor of alcohol, her admission to drinking, and her inability to perform the field sobriety exercises adequately, she was placed under arrest for DWI. Officer Williams transported her to the Parsippany-Troy Hills Township Police Department for processing. Cristin was read Standard Statement for Motor Vehicle Operators and she agreed to submit breath samples. Officer Van Orden administered the machine and Cristin’s Alcotest results indicated a BAC of 0.15%, which was nearly double the legal limit of 0.08%.
Cristin was eventually released pending her court appearance at the Parsippany Municipal Court on December 15, 2022. She was issued the following summonses: Operating under the influence (39:4-50), reckless driving (39:4-96), and traffic on marked lanes (39:4-88)
Court records indicate that on June 1, 2023, Cristin pleaded guilty to operating under the influence and she had to pay a total of $740 in fines, spend 12 hours at an intoxicated driver resource center, and use an ignition interlock device for 3 months. The other 2 citations were dismissed as a result of the plea agreement.
------------------------------------------
Please LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and consider supporting this channel (email us for more information). Donations will be used to acquire more public footage related to law enforcement activities.
Our content is educational and in compliance with UA-cam's Fair Use Policy because we edit several long clips into a concise story. This is similar to other law enforcement channels on UA-cam. All videos and case documents were obtained pursuant to the New Jersey Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. (P.L. 2001, c. 404). Defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty.
The New Jersey Supreme Court has previously affirmed in Salzano v. North Jersey Media Group, 993 A.2d 778 (2010) that “The fair-report privilege reflects the judgment that the need, in a self-governing society, for free-flowing information about matters of public interest outweighs concerns over the uncompensated injury to a person's reputation.” This video advances a compelling public interest, and some parts were blurred extensively in order to make appropriate redactions before being publicly shared. The summary of events was based on records that are “open to public view through open access to public records” as defined in the Salzano case. In Ramos v. Flowers, 429 N.J. Super. 13, the Appellate Division of the Superior Court has also affirmed the right to film law enforcement interactions.