A Leesburg woman was arrested for driving under the influence after several open beer cans and an empty bottle of liquor were found in her car during a traffic stop.
Police witnessed a black Volkswagen with its hazards on in the far-right lane of U.S. Highway 27 at about 12:19 a.m. Sunday, according to an arrest report from the Clermont Police Department.
After the officer approached the vehicle, he began a seemingly normal conversation with the driver, 30-year-old Stephanie Hope Evers. She advised that she pulled off to the side of the road because her car seemed like it was not driving normally, and she thought she may have a flat tire. She further stated that she was on her way to her boyfriend’s house where she would be staying the night, the report said.
Evers and the officer walked to the passenger’s side front tire where they both saw the tire was not flat. Because of this, the officer cleared the call, and Evers got back into her vehicle to leave, the report said.
As the officer observed Evers, she failed to take her blinker off while continuing to travel on U.S. Hwy. 27, the report said. She proceeded to make a U-turn at John’s Lake Road. While doing so, Evers kept her blinker on and turned her hazards back on to pull into the Walmart parking lot, located at 1450 John’s Lake Road.
This odd behavior prompted the officer to call another nearby officer, the report said. He then followed Evers into the parking lot and parked behind her. She claimed to have lost her phone and was unable to find it. She continued to fumble around in her vehicle looking for the phone she had prior to their last encounter.
Once both officers were on scene, they attempted to look into the vehicle and noticed an open Natural Light beer can in the front cup holder. Evers claimed she only had a coke bottle in the cup holder. When the officer reiterated he was referring to the can, she stated it was another soda.
Evers was ordered to pick up the can, at which time it was confirmed to be an open Natural Light beer can. She stated it belonged to her friend and that she had not drunk anything that night. Despite these claims, Evers was asked to turn off her vehicle, place her keys on the dashboard and step out. From there, she willingly participated in field sobriety exercises, the report said.
Due to Evers’ performance during the exercises and noticeable swaying, the officer concluded she was driving under the influence, the report said. A further search of her vehicle revealed another empty beer can on the passenger floorboard and an empty liquor bottle. However, Evers later refused to provide a breath sample to combat the evidence.
Evers was arrested and charged with DUI. She was transported to the Lake County Jail and released after posting $1,000 bond.
