Car accidents can happen at any time of day. Though law enforcement officials may be quick to assume that a driver who crashes at night may be under the influence of alcohol or drugs, other issues, such as fatigue, could just as easily have been the cause. Unfortunately, a woman in Missouri now faces multiple criminal charges, including DWI, after she was allegedly involved in a single-vehicle collision.
The crash reportedly happened just after 2 a.m. on a day in January. According to police reports, the 26-year-old woman was northbound on a Missouri road. She allegedly lost control of her vehicle, causing it to strike two light poles at an intersection.
The woman was transported to the hospital for treatment of minor injuries. Unfortunately, she now faces multiple criminal charges. In addition to DWI, she is accused of careless and imprudent driving causing an accident, failure to prove insurance and failure to register a vehicle.
Though it may be easy to assume that alcohol or drugs played a role in a crash because of the time of day it occurred, these assumptions alone are insufficient to meet the high burden of proof required by the criminal justice system. In this case, it is unclear what led police officers to believe that alcohol was a factor in the crash or what the woman’s blood alcohol content was at the time. Fortunately, there are experienced criminal defense attorneys who can help people in similar predicaments fully understand the DWI and other charges against them, and their options going forward, allowing them to make informed decisions about their case.