Drunken driver found with child, 10 bags of marijuana in car, officials say
A man is facing 10 charges after he allegedly drove under the influence of alcohol with a 5-year-old in the backseat.
Juan Carlos Mendoza-Perez, 26, of Gainesville, had marijuana in his possession when he was arrested, and the child was not properly strapped in, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office said Monday in a news release.
A deputy stopped Mendoza-Perez at the 700 block of Summit Street about 1 a.m. Sunday, according to sheriff’s spokesman Lt. Scott Ware. He was initially stopped for traffic-related violations, including failure to maintain his lane, Ware said.
When Mendoza-Perez was pulled over, he allegedly gave the deputy a fake name.
Ware said the deputy determined Mendoza-Perez was driving under the influence and arrested him on a DUI charge.
Ware said Mendoza-Perez also had 10 baggies of marijuana in his possession.
Mendoza-Perez was booked into the Hall County Jail. He is also charged with possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, obstruction, giving false name to an officer, driving without a license, endangering the life of a child by DUI, child safety restraint violation, tag light violation, failure to maintain lane of travel, and open container while operating a motor vehicle.
In other news:
About the Author
Asia Simone Burns is a watchdog reporter for the AJC. Burns was formerly an intern in AJC’s newsroom and now writes about crime. She is a graduate of Samford University and has previously reported for NPR and WABE, Atlanta’s NPR member station.
