Prosecutors say that a 20-year-old woman accused of causing a drunk driving crash that killed a mother and her newborn baby had a blood alcohol content of .21, nearly three times the legal limit.
According to ABC 7, the crash occurred early Wednesday morning along the Gulf Freeway feeder road in Houston. Shayla Joseph, 36, and her 3-month-old daughter, Braylan Jabari Joseph, were both pronounced dead at the scene.
Prosecutors have now revealed that the driver of the other vehicle, Veronica Rivas, 20, had a blood alcohol content of .21 following the collision. The number was recorded by a hospital attendant and reported to officers.
Drunk driving was suspected early on as investigators noted a strong odor of alcohol on Rivas’ breath following the accident as well as red glassy eyes and slurred speech. A friend of Rivas’ family told reporters that Rivas was so drunk that she does not even remember hitting the car.
Rivas faced a judge in court Friday morning and appeared to break down in tears when prosecutors told her that a 3-month-old baby was in the back of the car she hit.
Rivas has charged with two counts of intoxication manslaughter and was released from jail on a $30,000 bond.
During her court appearance on Friday, the judge informed Rivas that she is not allowed to leave her home without the court’s permission and must wear a GPS monitor which will track everywhere she goes. She also must wear a device that will monitor if she drinks any alcohol as a condition of her bond.
The following information was provided by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT):
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