Published: May 07, 2008 09:27 am            

Hit-and-run

Berea man charged with endangering 8-month-old baby

BEREA — A Berea man had his 8-month-old son unsecured in the back seat of his car Friday when he allegedly was involved in a hit-and-run crash while under the influence, police said.

At about 11:14 p.m., officers responded to a hit-and-run accident at the intersection of Chestnut and Elipse streets, said Berea Police Capt. Ken Clark.

“When we made contact with Mr. (Josiah) Hart, the officers detected a strong odor of alcoholic beverages emitting from him,” Clark said. “He failed three field sobriety tests whereby they charged him with DUI first offense. He did take a breath test and he went over the legal limit with a .132.”

The legal blood alcohol level in Kentucky is .08.

In the back seat of Hart’s car, his 8-month-old son was not in a child seat or secured by a seat belt, Clark said. As a result, Hart was charged with failure to use a child restraint device in a vehicle and endangering the welfare of a minor.

“You have to look at it two ways,” Clark said. “You are definitely endangering the welfare of a minor when they are not in a child restraint device at that age. But if you are operating under the influence, whether the child was in a child seat or not, you are still endangering the welfare of that minor. So it is sort of like a double whammy.”

Hart, 25, of Big Hill Road, additionally was charged with failure of owner to maintain required insurance (first offense). Clark did not have any further details about the crash itself, including who or what Hart allegedly struck with his vehicle.

Similar incident

Three days later, Berea Police also arrested Angela G. Brown, 25, of South Broadway Street, in a similar incident.

On April 29 at about 9:15 p.m., Clark said officers responded to a hit-and-run crash in the residential area of South Broadway, where Brown allegedly had struck a parked car.

“On arrival, several subjects indicated a dark van had pulled into 213 S. Broadway,” Clark said. “The officers located Ms. Brown inside the vehicle. They observed her back up in the driveway, and when they made contact with her, she appeared to be under the influence.”

Brown was given field sobriety tests and Clark said she admitted to the officers that she had taken drugs earlier in the day. She did not say what kind she had taken, he said. A blood test was administered but the results still are pending.

“Her driver’s license was suspended, she couldn’t show proof of insurance and when we first made contact with her, she told them she was somebody else,” Clark said. “They (the officers) warned her not to give a fake name, but she continued to give it. So officers located a picture ID with her real name in the search incident to arrest.”

Brown additionally was charged with operating on a suspended license, failure of owner to maintain required insurance and giving a police officer a false name.

Hart is lodged in the Madison County Detention Center on a $2,500 cash bond. Brown has been released from the jail on 10 percent of a $2,500 cash bond.

Kelly Foreman can be reached at kforeman@richmondregister.com or 624-6694.

        

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