Bartender Arrested for DWI After Leaving The Cornerstone

On December 10, 2022 around 1:59 AM, Officer Scott Gaston with the Montvale Police Department observed a 2016 Mercedes-Benz swerving across the double yellow line while driving northbound on N Kinderkamack Road. As a result of these driving patterns, he activated his emergency lights to initiate a traffic stop in front of 133 N Kinderkamack Road, just before the New York state line. He made contact with the driver, who was identified as Erika, and he asked her where she was coming from.

Erika told Officer Gaston that she was headed her home in New York and that she was coming from The Cornerstone, a popular bar in Hillsdale, New Jersey. Erika told the officer that she consumed 1 beer earlier that evening before operating a motor vehicle, but she would later admit to probably consuming 2 beers. She also stated that she worked as a bartender at a different restaurant in Westwood, New Jersey before heading over to The Cornerstone. Based on his suspicion of impairment, Officer Gaston waited for Officer DiLauri to arrive on scene before asking her to exit the vehicle and perform field sobriety exercises.

To initially assess her level of impairment, he asked Erika to recite the alphabet from “G” to “S,” but she failed to follow his instructions and continued past the letter “S.” Erika was then asked to count backwards from 89 to 69, but Erika continued counting past 69 until Officer Gaston stopped her at 63.

Officer DiLauri then administered the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test. The second exercise was the Walk and Turn test, which was administered by Officer Gaston. During the Walk and Turn test, Erika did not touch heel-to-toe on each step and turned improperly. The final exercise was the One Leg Stand test, and Erika failed to raise her foot in the proper fashion while not counting as instructed.

Based on her erratic driving, the odor of alcohol, her admission to drinking, and her inability to adequately perform the field sobriety exercises, Erika was placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated. Her vehicle was searched incident to arrest and she was transported to the Montvale Police Department for further processing. Officer Maleszewski arrived on scene and stayed with the vehicle until it was towed for a mandatory 12-hour impound as required by John’s Law.

At the Montvale Police Department, Erika was searched in more detail by Officer Pane with the River Vale Police Department. Officer Gaston read her the Standard Statement for Motor Vehicle Operators, and she agreed to submit breath samples. Officer DiLauri operated the machine, and her Alcotest results indicated a BAC of 0.13%, which was more than the limit of 0.08%.

After she was processed, Erika was released to a sober adult pending her court appearance in the Pascack Joing Municipal Court after she signed the Potential Liability Warning form on her behalf. Officer Gaston issued her the following summonses: Operating under the influence, careless driving, traffic on marked lanes, and failure to possess driver insurance card

Court records indicate that on April 19, 2023, Erika pleaded guilty to operating under the influence and she was fined a total of $640. She was also required to use an ignition interlock device for 3 months and spend 12 hours at an intoxicated driver resource center. The other 3 citations were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.

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