HOUSTON – Police say a woman who was taken into custody for public intoxication was killed early Wednesday when a suspected drunken driver struck the patrol car transporting her. The handcuffed woman was ejected from the police car and died later at the hospital. The officer in the patrol car suffered minor injuries and was also taken to the hospital.
According to the Houston Police Department, the incident occurred in downtown Houston at about 3:35 a.m. when a 21-year-old woman in a red Chevrolet Cobalt slammed into the cruiser.
“The female driving the Chevy Cobalt, there’s evidence that leads us to believe she was driving while intoxicated,” said HPD Sgt. Ignacia Izaguire at the scene. “The officer stated she had the green light. The female driver of the Cobalt, she admitted to have been drinking some alcoholic beverages, pretty much did not know what happened. She stated to one of our officers here that she, ‘shouldn’t have been driving, shouldn’t have been driving.'”
The Cobalt’s driver reportedly suffered a head injury and was sent to the hospital along with a passenger in her car.
Police said the 21-year-old woman killed in the accident was not properly restrained in a seat belt. She had been taken into custody earlier in the night after it was determined she was a hazard to herself. She was being transported to a sobriety center when the crash occurred.
The incident is being investigated by HPD’s Vehicular Crimes and Internal Affairs Divisions.
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