Leesburg woman to be arraigned in court after holiday DUI

A Leesburg woman is due to be arraigned in court Jan. 31 after she was busted for suspicion of driving impaired over the holidays.

Karen Marie Arney, 65, was arrested in December by the Leesburg Police Department when a traffic stop led to officers noticing signs of impairment that indicated she was drunk driving. 

On the evening of Tuesday, Dec. 26, an officer observed the driver of a white Honda SUV, later identified as Arney, traveling east on U.S. Hwy. 441 with no rear lights on, according to an arrest report form the Leesburg Police Department. The officer initiated a traffic stop and identified Arney using her driver’s license. 

While speaking with Arney, the officer noticed her eyes were glassy, and her speech was slurred. She advised that she had just left the downtown area during the conversation. Due to the suspicion of DUI, the officer requested another officer to assist with a DUI investigation while finishing a written warning for the equipment violation, the report said. 

Two more officers arrived on scene, and they were asked to speak with Arney to see if they saw the same indicators of DUI, which they did. Arney was then asked to exit her vehicle and meet the officer at the hood of his patrol vehicle to receive the written warning, the report said. 

At that point, Arney explained that she drank wine at 2 and 4 p.m. but only had water afterward. She also informed the officers that she took numerous prescription medications for multiple medical diagnoses, the report said. 

Due to personally observed indicators of impairment and Arney’s admission to drinking alcohol, she was asked to participate in field sobriety exercises. She agreed but was unsteady and needed instructions to be repeated. These additional signs led the officers to conclude that Arney was driving under the influence, the report said. 

Breath tests taken later resulted in 0.074 and 0.078, just under the legal limit of 0.08, the report said. 

Arney was ultimately arrested on charge of DUI and transported to the Lake County Jail. She also issued a uniform traffic citation. She was released the next day after posting $1,000 bond.