A drunk driving was taken into custody after causing a crash at Lake Sumter Landing while driving with a 5-year-old child in the car.
At around 9:30 p.m. Monday, Sumter County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a two-vehicle incident in a parking lot at Lake Sumter Landing Square on Old Camp Road. The at-fault driver, Sam Tawale of Ocala, informed deputies that he collided with another car while attempting to make a right turn out of the parking lot.
The native of Zimbabwe was traveling with an adult passenger and a 5-year-old child when the crash occurred. While inspecting the situation, a deputy noticed Tawale’s bloodshot and glassy eyes, slurred speech, slow body movements, and a strong odor of alcohol on his breath.
Tawale originally denied drinking, but then acknowledged to consuming alcohol. He consented to do a series of standardized field sobriety tests in the parking lot, but he struggled greatly. During the evaluations, he took the incorrect number of steps, missed heel-to-toe contact, and tripped backward. When asked to repeat the alphabet, he failed twice, telling the deputy that he forgot and using an expletive to explain his error.
He was transferred to Sumter County Jail, where he gave two breath samples. The samples had blood alcohol concentrations of 0.158 and 0.157, respectively, which are nearly twice the legal limit for Florida.
Tawale was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence with a blood alcohol level of 0.15 or above with a minor in the vehicle. He was booked into the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting a $1,000 bond.
Leave a Reply