Crime & Safety

Blotter: 3 DUI Arrests, Crashes on West Chester Pike

The following information was provided by the Newtown Township Police Department. Any arrests or charges mentioned do not indicate guilt or conviction.

NEWTOWN SQUARE–On Oct. 4 at approximately 2:10 a.m., Newtown police responded to the 4600 block of West Chester Pike/Rt. 3 for a reported car crash. Upon arrival, police observed a 1988 Chevrolet Lumina that had crashed into a concrete Welcome sign in the grass median along Rt. 3. According to the report, the vehicle had sustained major front-end damage and was facing north in the eastbound lanes of Rt. 3. The driver of the vehicle, a 23-year-old man from Rosemont, was standing outside of the vehicle and talking on his cell phone. According to the report, police noticed the man's speech slurred while speaking on his phone, unsteady on his feet, and a strong odor of alcohol coming from the man. The man told police he was traveling eastbound on Rt. 3 when an animal ran in front of his car. The man told police he swerved his vehicle to avoid hitting the animal, and drove on top of the median, according to the report. The man drove approximately 100 feet onto the median before striking the concrete sign. The man couldn't provide police with an explanation on why he couldn't avoid crashing into the sign, according to the report. The man failed three field sobriety tests, according to the report. The man was arrested for DUI.

Man Claims to Have "Just One Beer," 0.142% Blood Alcohol Content Recorded

On Oct. 5 at approximately 9:55 p.m., police responded to the 3700 block of West Chester Pike/Rt. 3 by Newtown Street Road/Rt. 252 for a reported intoxicated, reckless driver. The caller informed police a Mercury van was observed slowing down on Rt. 3 and speeding up in a reckless manor traveling eastbound on Rt. 3. Police were able to catch up with the vehicle and drove behind the vehicle, and noticed several times the van slowing down as if to stop only to speed up and swerve over the fog line and center divided line, according to the report. Police were able to pull the vehicle over around Valley View Lane and Rt. 3. When police spoke with the driver, a 31-year-old man from Philadelphia, police observed the driver had bloodshot, glassy eyes and spoke with a slurred speech, according to the report. When police asked the man if he had been drinking, the man responded he had "just one beer." Police conducted two field sobriety tests in which the man failed, according to the report. A breathalyzer test was administered in which a BAC of 0.142 percent was recorded from the man. The man was arrested for charges of DUI, careless driving, and driving on roadways laned for traffic.

Drunk Driver Hits Off-Duty Officer Car, Flees

On Oct. 7 at approximately 7:43 p.m., police responded to the area of West Chester Pike/Rt. 3 and Medical Drive for a report of a vehicle involved in a hit-and-run accident in West Goshen. According to the report, an off-duty officer had been following the vehicle and observed the vehicle strike the median while traveling east on Rt. 3. Police were able to catch up with the vehicle around the 3600 block of Rt. 3 and attempted to pull the vehicle, according to the report. The vehicle failed to stop and continued to travel along Rt. 3 while making intermittent stops and swerving over the center divide line several times, according to the report. The driver then made an erratic lane change around Bryn Mawr Avenue and coming to a sudden stop on the shoulder around the 3400 block of Rt. 3, according to the report. Police spoke with the driver, a 56-year-old woman from Broomall, and detected a strong odor of alcohol coming from the woman as well as bloodshot eyes and appeared unsteady on her feet when exiting the vehicle, according to the report. When police asked the woman if she had been drinking, the woman responded, according to the report, that she had "two glasses of wine." When police asked the woman about the accident she was involved in, the woman's responses were "erratic" and "rambling," said police in the report. Police were able to administer a breathalyzer test on the woman in which a 0.259 percent BAC was recorded from the woman. The woman failed a field sobriety test and was arrested for charges of DUI and careless driving. According to the report, the off-duty officer told police he was traveling eastbound on Rt. 3 when he was struck in the rear by a Toyota Camry, in which the woman did not stop and continued driving. 

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