Milton grandmother faces DUI charge

A Milton grandmother, who police say was driving erratically with a child in the front seat, was out on bond Wednesday after a weekend arrest on a DUI charge.

Police told Channel 2 Action News that Cui Chen, 46, was pulled over around 5:30 p.m. Saturday on Ga. 9 after a call to 911 about a woman “walking in a daze” and trying to get into several cars in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart on Windward Parkway.

According to the police report, Chen was with her 3-year-old grandson in the parking lot. The child accidently hit another car with a shopping cart and when the owner confronted Chen, the grandmother “just stared,” the report said, citing a witness.

The police report said Chen finally got into a white Honda Accord, backed out, and several times drove short distances and stopped before leaving the parking lot.

By the time a Milton officer arrived at the Wal-Mart, the Accord had left and was headed down Ga. 9. After initially refusing to stop, police said the Accord, which had crossed the double lines, finally pulled into a CVS parking lot.

The officer said he found Chen behind the wheel and her grandson restrained in the front seat.

When she was asked to exit the car, the officer said Chen stumbled.

“She had trouble steadying herself and appeared physically intoxicated at the time,” Milton police Capt. Shawn McCarty told Channel 2.

After a sobriety test, Chen, who told the officer she couldn’t speak English, was taken into custody.

“It’s bad enough to have someone driving intoxicated with a child, but also to not have the child properly restrained,” McCarty said.

Family friend Shaoting Wang was called to pick the child up after Chen’s arrest. He told Channel 2 the woman does not drink or do drugs and may have been suffering from low blood sugar. The child’s parents were out of the country and the grandmother was taking care of him, the friend said.