A West Palm Beach woman who had been staying at the Waterfront Inn at Lake Sumter Landing got a break this past week in a drunk driving case.
Laura Jane Short, 54, pleaded no contest in Sumter County Court to a charge of reckless driving, reduced from an original charge of driving under the influence. She has been placed on probation for six months.
Short had been at the wheel of the white Cadillac at about 11:30 p.m. Aug. 25 on County Road 466A near Morse Boulevard when a Sumter County sheriff’s deputy noticed that the Cadillac’s headlights weren’t illuminated, according to an arrest report.
During a traffic stop, the deputy found that Short had “slurred speech” and was “very talkative.” The deputy also detected the “strong odor consistent with the impurities of an alcoholic beverage coming from the defendant’s mouth.” She told the deputy she was staying at the Waterfront Inn and was on her way to a gas station to fill up the Cadillac before heading home in the morning.
The Bedford, Ind. native agreed to participate in field sobriety exercises and chose to “perform the exercise barefoot,” the deputy noted in the report. She performed poorly. She provided breath samples that registered .084 and .078 blood alcohol content.
