A Villager who was naked from the waist down when she was arrested on a drunk driving charge learned her fate in court this week.
Janice Jackson Tate, 68, was driving a white 2006 Toyota Solara at about 6:30 p.m. Aug. 19 when she ran into the curb near the Manatee Recreation Center. Tate’s vehicle had damage to the front-end bumper, undercarriage and driver’s side tire, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriffs’s Office. She was found inside the recreation enter, “staggering and unable to maintain balance and wearing no clothing from the waist down,” according to the arrest report. The Memphis native, who lives nearby at 1721 Merry Road, said she was heading home when another vehicle drove toward her. She claimed she swerved to avoid a collision. EMS personnel provided Tate with a sheet, since she was unclothed from the waist down. During field sobriety exercises, Tate raised her leg in a martial arts stance, which was not in accordance with the instructions she had been given. She provided breath samples that registered .275 and .280 blood alcohol content.
Tate appeared in Sumter County Court on Tuesday and pleaded no contest to a charge of driving under the influence. She will lose her license for six months, has been placed on probation for one year and has been ordered to perform 50 hours of community service.