California state senator accused of DUI cleared after blood test shows no signs of drugs or alcohol
A California state senator who Sacramento police accused of driving drunk after a car crash will not face criminal charges after lab results showed there were no traces of drugs or alcohol in her system, prosecutors announced Friday.
Sen. Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) was cited on suspicion of DUI after police interviewed her at a Sacramento hospital, where she was being treated after a car crash near the Capitol on May 19.
At the hospital, Sacramento police questioned the state senator for hours and concluded she showed signs of intoxication and cited her.
But in a statement, prosecutors said they reviewed all of the evidence, police reports, witness statements and laboratory results presented by police and decided not to charge her. Cervantes, 37, a first-year state senator, represents the 31st Senate District, which covers portions of Riverside and San Bernardino counties, and previously served in the state Assembly.
"Based on our ethical duty and the burden of proof in a criminal trial, the Sacramento County DA's Office declines to file any charges in this case," the Sacramento County district attorney's office said in a statement.
Prosecutors received the toxicology results from a blood sample taken after the crash that tested negative for "any measurable amount of alcohol or drugs," according to a statement from the district attorney's office.
Cervantes' dealings with Sacramento law enforcement began after her SUV was T-boned by another vehicle. She left the scene around 1:30 p.m. and received a ride to a hospital, where police eventually showed up and questioned her.
The officers who interviewed Cervantes said she refused a field sobriety test and they "observed objective signs that led them to believe she may have been impaired while operating a motor vehicle," the department said in a statement.
Cervantes strenuously denied driving while impaired after news of her citation became known.
'The accusation that I was driving under the influence is utterly false,' she said in a statement after the citation. 'The Sacramento Police Department's accusations are unjust and hold no truth.'
Cervantes' office then released redacted medical records from her treatment at a Kaiser Permanente hospital in Sacramento. She said the report shows there was no alcohol or drugs in her system. Her vital signs and behavior were not irregular either, she said.
Cervantes' office did not immediately respond to requests for comment about no charges being filed against her.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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