Patty Ann Cressaty said she no longer wanted to live.
Behind the wheel of her 2009 Porsche, the 67-year-old wife and mother got on Ga. 400 heading northbound, according to Atlanta police. But Cressaty was on the southbound side of the highway, 15 miles from her home near Sandy Springs.
Other drivers called 911 to report the wrong-way driver Sunday morning around 11 a.m., but before officers could stop her, there was a fiery, three-vehicle crash at Lenox Road.
As Cressaty drove against traffic in the emergency lane, she struck the concrete median, sending the Porsche spinning, witnesses told police. The Porsche struck a Toyota Camry and then a Nissan Sentra before it ignited, police said.
Cressaty was unconscious, but breathing as strangers pulled her from the burning car. When the first officer arrived, Cressaty was on the side of Ga. 400, a police report released Monday stated.
Critically injured, Cressaty was taken by ambulance to Grady Memorial Hospital, along with the drivers and a passenger from the other two cars, according to police. Of the four, Cressaty’s injuries were the most serious and life-threatening.
For more than two hours, Ga. 400 was blocked in the area, backing up traffic for miles.
But what caused a driver to go the wrong way on the busy road?
At the hospital, Cressaty was able to answer the question herself, according to police. Cressaty was able to tell a doctor she was attempting to kill herself when she purposely drove the wrong way on Ga. 400, the doctor told police.
No additional details were released Monday on the suicide attempt. Cressaty was cited for reckless driving and driving on the wrong side of the road, according to police. She remained in the hospital Monday.
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