| For Immediate Release Case # 09HM03961
May 29, 2009 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Public Affairs Counsel Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami |
SHERIFF’S LIEUTENANT CHARGED WITH DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL AFTER CAUSING FENDER-BENDER IN IRVINE
NEWPORT BEACH – A Lieutenant with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department (OCSD) has been charged with one misdemeanor count each of driving under the influence of alcohol and driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 percent or more. Erin Lorraine Giudice, 48, faces a maximum sentence of six months in jail if convicted and is scheduled to be arraigned June 19, 2009, at 9:00 a.m. at the Harbor Justice Center in Newport Beach. The Department is to be determined.
At approximately 9:00 p.m. on April 14, 2009, Giudice is accused of driving in an unmarked OCSD vehicle northbound on Jamboree Road in Irvine while under the influence of alcohol. At the intersection of Jamboree Road and the Interstate 5, Giudice is accused of crashing into the back of another car, which was stopped at a red light. The driver of the other vehicle did not sustain any injuries and there was minor damage to his car.
When officers from the Irvine Police Department responded, Giudice is accused of displaying objective signs of intoxication including slurred speech, bloodshot and watery eyes, and a lack of balance. She is accused of having a blood alcohol level of .14 percent two hours after the collision.
Deputy District Attorney Keith Bogardus of the Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting this case.
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