CLERMONT, Fla. – A Clermont woman was arrested on Thursday after police said she stood by as a baby was trapped in the back of a car she crashed.
In an arrest affidavit, police said an officer responded to a crash Thursday afternoon near Hancock and Johns and Johns Lake roads.
Recommended Videos
The officer found a Jeep rolled onto its side in a ditch with a baby trapped in the back seat, the affidavit says.
Officers were able to rescue the child from the car, but the driver — Josefina Lopez, 21 — was found standing on the sidewalk next to the Jeep, “not attempting to remove him from the overturned vehicle,” investigators wrote.
In addition, officers said they could smell alcohol on Lopez’s breath while speaking with her, and her eyes appeared “glassy and bloodshot.”
“Josefina advised that she was en route to the store, when she missed a turn on her directions to her phone and attempted to U-turn on Hancock Road,” the affidavit reads.
[EXCLUSIVE: Become a News 6 Insider (it’s FREE) | PINIT! Share your photos]
While making the U-turn, Lopez claimed, the vehicle went off the road and flipped over.
And when police asked how fast she’d been driving, Lopez said she wasn’t sure, though “she knew she was not in an area where she should not be travelling over 50-60 mph,” the affidavit states.
Lopez and the child were both taken to the hospital, where the child received medical care. However, police said Lopez told them she was homeless and that she and the child had no place to stay.
“When asked about a current phone number, Josefina advised that she did not have a phone and that it was disabled,” an officer said. “It should be noted that I observed Josefina to have a phone, and she was making calls on it during portions of my interactions with her.”
The affidavit also notes that a witness spoke to police, revealing the following information:
“(The witness) advised that she was able to observe Josefina exit the vehicle through the driver’s door with the door slamming behind her. (She) witnessed Josefina immediately state, ‘Don’t call 911, don’t call 911, help me get (REDACTED) he’s in the car.’
After 1-2 minutes passed, (the witness) claimed that Josefina was on the phone and said, ‘Dad, you have to get down here, they already called 911.’ (The witness) further exclaimed that she had heard the baby still crying and attempted to flag down another vehicle for help. (She) further states Josefina was still on the phone and had stepped away to the corner of her ear and sat down where law enforcement later arrived.
It should be noted Josefina was not the one to call 911. (REDACTED), a witness, was the one who had called in regard to the accident while Josefina had full access to her phone and continued to make other calls.”
Clermont Police Officer B. Dion
According to police, Lopez refused to participate in any field sobriety exercises or a breath test.
As a result of the incident, Lopez was arrested and faces charges of DUI with property damage, and abuse, aggravated abuse and neglect of a child. She is held on bond of $7,000.
Police added that the child was turned over to a family friend, though Lopez told an employee with the Department of Children and Families that she’s planning to leave the state once she’s released, as she has nowhere else to stay in Florida.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: