One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
'I've Never Seen Anybody That Drunk,' Say Officers of Driver
Photo by Salina Canizales via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr
A woman pulled over and taken into custody on Cinco de Mayo in Santa Ana had a blood alcohol content level of .30, four times the legal limit, reports the OC Register. Leann Renee Arriaga, 20 (yes, as in, not old enough to drink) was stopped by police after she ran a red light. When they pulled her over and administering a breathalizer, they realized just how far gone she was. According to the Register, a .30 is dangerous not just for the havoc it can cause you to wreak on the road:
Someone with a blood-alcohol level of .30 is "in a stupor" and at risk of suddenly passing out, according to Facts on Tap, a national alcohol-education program. It's approaching the level of surgical anesthesia; concentrations just a few percentage points higher have killed people.
Arriaga, it turns out, is also no stranger to the police. They discovered after her booking that she had six tickets to her name, for speeding, traffic infractions and littering. In a picture accompanying the Register's article, Arriaga is shown looking directly into the camera and smiling, as she's being handcuffed.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
