DOVER — A 38-year-old Dover woman was charged with assault by auto and driving while intoxicated after police said she struck a parked vehicle that was pushed onto the sidewalk and hit a pedestrian, then drove away from the scene early Sunday, September 20.
At approximately 1:57 a.m., Dover police were dispatched to a hit-and-run crash near 6 South Warren Street. According to the crash report, Raquel L. Orama was driving a blue 2004 Lexus GX west on West Blackwell Street and was turning left onto South Warren Street when her vehicle struck a parked 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The impact pushed the Jeep partially onto the sidewalk, where it struck a 30-year-old Mine Hill man who was walking. A third parked vehicle, a 2015 Jeep Compass, sustained minor front-end damage. The Lexus’s airbags deployed, and the vehicle left the scene.
The injured pedestrian was transported to St. Clares Dover.
Officers later located the Lexus on Franklin Road near Washington Place with heavy front-end damage that left it inoperable. Orama was sitting in the driver’s seat.
According to the report, Orama told officers she had three beers at a bar on East Blackwell Street and had taken an over-the-counter pain reliever before driving. She told police her foot may have gotten stuck on the accelerator while making the turn and that she panicked and left after the crash. She said she believed she had only struck one vehicle and told officers she had never been involved in a crash before; police later determined she had been the driver in two prior crashes.
Officer German Liranzo administered standardized field sobriety tests. According to police, Orama swayed throughout the testing, lost her balance during instructions, stepped off the line, missed heel-to-toe steps, used her arms for balance and put her foot down several times during the One-Leg-Stand test.
Officer Renzo Guzman placed her under arrest. A search of her vehicle turned up an unopened can of beer. She was transported to police headquarters, where an Alcotest recorded a blood alcohol content of 0.13 percent, above the legal limit of 0.08 percent.
Orama was charged with the following:
- Assault by Auto (N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1c(2))
- Driving While Intoxicated (N.J.S.A. 39:4-50)
- Leaving the Scene of an Accident Involving Personal Injury (N.J.S.A. 39:4-129a)
- Leaving the Scene of an Accident Involving Property Damage (N.J.S.A. 39:4-129b)
- Failure to Report an Accident (N.J.S.A. 39:4-130)
- Careless Driving Causing Property Damage (N.J.S.A. 39:4-97a)
She was released to a family member, who signed the responsible party form. She is scheduled to appear in Morris County Superior Court on Wednesday, October 14, on the assault by auto charge.
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.
