A Leesburg woman was arrested on a charge driving under the influence after her Ford SUV was involved in an accident early Friday morning on U.S. Hwy. 27.
A Florida Highway Patrol trooper was dispatched to the crash site on U.S. Hwy. 27 in Groveland where the e found a blue Ford Escape facing north in the highway median. The Ford was occupied by 29-year-old Nicole Elizabeth Murphy of Leesburg.
The trooper observed Murphy to have a strong odor of alcohol on her breath. She was slurring her words and kept repeating “my car will not start now.” He also noted in the arrest report that Murphy’s eyes were glassy and her face was flushed .
After completing an accident reportm the trooper began his DUI investigation by asking the Pennsylvania native what she had to drink. Murphy said she had one 16-ounce rum and orange juice. She agreed to perform the standardized field sobriety exercises. She did poorly in the exercises and was placed under arrest for driving under the influence.
While being transported to the Lake County Jail Murphy urinated on herself and left the patrol car seat wet. At the jail she provided two breath samples which revealed a blood alcohol level of .131. Bond was set at $500.
