Drunk Woman Crashes Into an Uber Driver and Tries to Flee

Around 6:01 PM on June 28, 2025, Officer Valentino Salgado with the Hoboken Police Department was on patrol in the area of 2nd Street and he heard a loud bang consistent with a motor vehicle crash. He then observed a black vehicle with heavy damage to its right rear fender. After making contact with the driver of the black 2014 Tesla Model X, the driver pointed towards a white 2014 GMC SUV, and told Officer Salgado that the GMC was probably the vehicle that had struck his car.

He then made his way towards the intersection of 1st Street and Willow Avenue, where he made contact with the driver of the GMC. The driver of the GMC, later identified as Bailee Zimmerman, told Officer Salgado that she looked down as she received a text message, and then struck the other person’s car when she was distracted. As he was speaking with her, he observed indicators of impairment and asked her if she had anything to drink. While she initially denied consuming any alcohol, she would later admit to consuming a can of Ginger Mule 8% in Guttenberg earlier that afternoon.

Sergeant Francis McCourt and Officers John Rodriguez, Rose Kanan, Alexander Miller, and Kyle Seper arrived on scene shortly afterwards to assist. As the officers were speaking with her, they detected the odor of alcohol and observed other indicators of impairment. Officer Miller asked Bailee to perform field sobriety exercises.

Officer Miller started with the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test. The second exercise was the Walk and Turn test. During the Walk and Turn test, Bailee did not touch heel-to-toe on each step and turned improperly. The final exercise was the One Leg Stand test. During the One Leg Stand test, Bailee failed to raise her foot in the proper fashion and did not count in the correct sequence.

Based on motor vehicle crash, her indicators of impairment, and her inability to satisfactorily complete the field sobriety exercises, Bailee was placed under arrest for driving under the influence. After she was placed under arrest, the vehicle was impounded for a 12-hour hold according to John’s Law. Officer Kanan transported Bailee to the Hoboken Police Department for further processing.

At police headquarters, Bailee was read the Standard Statement for Motor Vehicle Operators, but she agreed to submit breath samples. Her Alcotest results indicated a BAC level of 0.13%, which was over the legal limit of 0.08%. After the officers were finished with their paperwork, Bailee was released to a sober adult pending her court appearance after he signed the Potential Liability Warning form on Bailee’s behalf.

Bailee was issued the following citations:

-Operating under the influence

-Reckless driving

-Leaving the scene of an accident

----------------------------------------------

Please LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and consider supporting this channel (email us for more information). Our content is shared for educational and news gathering purposes. We are in compliance with YouTube's Fair Use Policy because we edit several long clips into a concise story. This is similar to other law enforcement channels on YouTube. All videos and case documents were obtained pursuant to the New Jersey Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. (P.L. 2024, c.16). Defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty.

The New Jersey Supreme Court has previously affirmed in Salzano v. North Jersey Media Group, 993 A.2d 778 (2010) that “The fair-report privilege reflects the judgment that the need, in a self-governing society, for free-flowing information about matters of public interest outweighs concerns over the uncompensated injury to a person's reputation.” This video advances a compelling public interest. The summary of events was based on records that are “open to public view through open access to public records” as defined in the Salzano case. In Ramos v. Flowers, 429 N.J. Super. 13, the Appellate Division of the Superior Court has also affirmed the right to film law enforcement interactions.