A Christmas party led to car a crash and drunk driving arrest for a driver who overturned his car.
A Florida Highway Patrol trooper was patrolling U.S. Hwy. 27 on Friday near Dewey Robbins Road in Leesburg when he noticed a car parked on the northbound shoulder with a bumper hanging off the vehicle and debris which appeared to be from an accident. The trooper made contact with the driver of the damaged vehicle and saw a second vehicle which had overturned in a creek with one person trapped inside. The driver of the car parked on the side of the road told the trooper that he was rear ended by the car in the creek which had been moving at a high speed.
The trooper told the man in the upside-down car that fire and rescue was on its way and would get him out of the vehicle. The man, 47-year-old Eddie Lancaster Wilson, asked “Was there something in the road?,” according to the police report.
After Wilson was extricated from the overturned car he told the trooper that he had been traveling 35 miles per hour but later said he was going 45 mph when the trooper indicated the damage seemed too extreme for a 35 mph vehicle crash. Wilson also told the trooper that he was going home from a Christmas party.
Wilson seemed shocked when the trooper pointed out the damage to the other man’s car as he did not know that he had collided with the other vehicle. While speaking with Wilson, the trooper noticed that Wilson was swaying, had glassy, bloodshot eyes and had a strong odor of alcohol on his breath.
Wilson refused to perform standardized field sobriety exercises when asked by the trooper.
Wilson was placed under arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol and was transported to the Lake County Jail where he refused to provide a breath sample.
A check of Wilson’s driving record revealed that his license was suspended. Wilson was charged with driving while license suspended and DUI. He was released after posting $3,500 bond.