DOVER — A Denville woman was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated and two counts of child endangerment after police say she crashed her vehicle into a utility pole while her young son and nephew were riding in the back seat.
Valerie Medina-Yepes, 28, was arrested by the Dover Police Department following a single-vehicle crash reported at approximately 9:22 p.m. Sunday, August 2, at Second Street and Academy Street, near Crescent Field.
According to police, Patrolman Christopher Caraig responded to the area after Morris County Dispatch advised of a motor vehicle crash with injuries. Upon arrival, Patrolman Caraig found a single vehicle on the sidewalk with heavy front-end damage after it had struck a fixed utility pole.
Police say Medina-Yepes told the officer she had been driving the vehicle and that she had been using her cell phone while operating it prior to the crash. Her nephew and her son, both children, were seated in the back seat at the time of the crash.
While speaking with Medina-Yepes, Patrolman Caraig reported detecting the odor of alcoholic beverages on her breath. Police say Medina-Yepes stated she had consumed approximately two to three alcoholic beverages at an event prior to the crash. Her speech was described in the police report as slow, slurred and slobbering.
Medina-Yepes agreed to perform standardized field sobriety tests, which police say she performed poorly, including swaying during the tests and losing her balance. She was placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated and transported to Dover Police Headquarters, where she submitted to breath samples on the Alcotest machine. Police say the results indicated a blood alcohol content of 0.197 percent, more than double the state’s legal limit of 0.08 percent.
The Dover Rescue Squad responded to the scene to evaluate both children. Police say her son reported pain after hitting the side of his car seat’s head rest during the crash. Neither child was transported to a hospital. Both were released to family members: her son to his mother and her nephew to Medina-Yepes’s sister.
Police reported that three pedestrians on the sidewalk told officers Medina-Yepes’s vehicle nearly struck them before she drove over the sidewalk and into the utility pole. The pedestrians were not struck and were not injured.
The Morris County Prosecutor’s Office was contacted regarding the incident, and Medina-Yepes was charged with two counts of child endangerment on a complaint-summons. The state’s Division of Child Protection and Permanency was also notified and advised that a response would be conducted by its Morris West Local Office.
Medina-Yepes was released pending court action under John’s Law to an acquaintance who came to headquarters to pick her up, along with her traffic and complaint summonses.
She was charged with the following:
- Driving While Intoxicated (N.J.S.A. 39:4-50)
- Driving While Intoxicated Within 1,000 Feet of a School (N.J.S.A. 39:4-50(g)(1))
- Careless Driving (N.J.S.A. 39:4-97)
- Use of a Cell Phone While Driving (N.J.S.A. 39:4-97.3)
- Improper Driving on a Sidewalk (N.J.S.A. 39:4-71)
- Failure to Maintain Lane (N.J.S.A. 39:4-88)
- Two counts of Child Cruelty and Neglect (N.J.S.A. 9:6-3)
An appearance date in Dover Municipal Court has been scheduled.
Editor’s Note: The charges outlined in this publication are merely accusations, and the defendant and/or defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
