LB Press Telegram – Mom at Checkpoint had kids, beer in the car

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Police: Mom drove with kids, beer

LONG BEACH — A mother of two was arrested for drunken driving after she was caught driving with an open bottle of beer in her lap and her two kids sleeping in the back seat at a random DUI checkpoint over the weekend, authorities said Tuesday.

Joyce Lopez, 21, of Huntington Beach was arrested for drunken driving after her blood alcohol level registered more than double the .08 legal limit, said Sgt. Tom Marcoux of the Long Beach Police Department‘s Patrol Division.

“As soon as the officer saw her he noticed the kids in the back, he noticed the strong odor of alcohol, he noticed the bottle of beer in her lap and he (thought) `Oh my God,’ ” Marcoux said Tuesday.

While Lopez was booked on a DUI charge at about 9:47 p.m. Saturday, her two children — who appeared to be 1 and 7 years old — were taken into protective custody by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, the sergeant said.

“Who knows, maybe (having her children taken by county authorities) will turn her around,” Marcoux said. “It’s lucky for those kids that we got them out of that car before anything really bad happened.”

Lopez pleaded no contest at the Long Beach Superior Court Monday to all the misdemeanor counts filed against her — including driving under the influence, driving under the influence with a minor in the vehicle and child endangerment — City Prosecutor Tom Reeves said Tuesday.

Reeves said Lopez was placed on three years’ probation and fined more than $400 after she entered her no contest plea — considered the same as a guilty plea by criminal courts. Lopez was also given credit for two days served in jail and released from custody Monday, Reeves said.

Marcoux said Lopez was chosen at random to be screened in a DUI checkpoint conducted by the LBPD Saturday night at Pacific Coast Highway and Loynes Drive from 6 p.m. Saturday until 2 a.m. Sunday.

During the eight-hour operation, more than 2,000 vehicles passed through the checkpoint and more than 600 were screened. Of the vehicles screened, four drivers were arrested for driving under the influence — including Lopez — and 18 drivers were issued traffic citations for various offenses, Marcoux said.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 24th, 2008 at 2:32 pm and is filed under Dui Checkpoints, DUI News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.