A Cape Coral woman is accused of driving drunk with an infant in the car.
Rachel Elizabeth Faircloth, 22, of 628 S.W. 21st St., was arrested Monday and charged with one count each of DUI unlawful blood alcohol content .15 or higher or with person under 18 years of age and neglect child without great harm. She has been released from the Lee County Jail on $1,500 bond.
A telephone message left Tuesday seeking comment was not returned.
According to jail booking records, Faircloth has a court date Sept. 13.
At about 7:04 p.m. Monday, the Cape Coral Police Department received a complaint about a reckless driver in the area of Cape Coral Parkway West and Chiquita Boulevard South. According to a police report, the caller said the driver of a red Nissan SUV was speeding and running stop signs.
The caller also reported that the driver had “driven in the grass median several times.” Officers located the Nissan and observed the SUV going 60 mph in a posted 45 mph zone, swerving within its lane and appear to strike the curb at one point, the report states. In the 1000 block of Cape Coral Parkway West, the Nissan “nearly rear ended a car in front of it.”
Police pulled over the driver of the Nissan, later identified as Faircloth. According to the report, she leaned on the vehicle and used the door for support, had difficulty with the field sobriety tests, and stated that she could not do the field sobriety tests “because she was too drunk.”
Faircloth was then placed under arrest, the report states. There was a passenger in the Nissan, an 8-month-old child. The Department of Children and Families was notified of the incident and the child was turned over to a relative. Faircloth was transported to the Lee County Jail and booked.
According to the report, Faircloth consented to a breath test. She had a blood alcohol content, or BAC, of .204 and .202. Under Florida law, motorists are considered impaired with a BAC of .08 or greater.
Faircloth reportedly told police that she had consumed one Michelob Ultra, three Sparks and one Mike’s Hard Lemonade starting at 2 p.m. She claimed to have an alcohol problem and said she wants to get help. She also allegedly stated that when police stopped her, she only felt OK driving on back roads.