A woman sipping a Budweiser beer was arrested on a drunk driving charge after she was found slumped over her steering wheel in a bicycle lane in Bushnell.
A Sumter County Sheriff’s Office deputy responded to a reckless driver complaint at about 3:24 p.m. Thursday regarding a white Nissan Rogue that was swerving and nearly hitting other vehicles. The caller reported that the vehicle had ultimately parked in a designated bicycle lane where motor vehicles are prohibited.
When the deputy arrived near the intersection of South Florida Street and East Seminole Avenue, he located the white Nissan Rogue blocking the bike path. The engine was still running, and the driver, identified as 53-year-old Genevieve B. Winston of Deltona, was slumped over the steering wheel, according to the arrest report.
As the deputy approached the closed window, he observed Winston holding a red Budweiser can in her right hand and taking a drink from it. The deputy knocked on the window, startling her. Winston quickly attempted to conceal the open beer by placing her pink bag over the center cupholder.
When Winston rolled down the window, the deputy was immediately met with the strong odor of alcohol. When asked for her driver’s license, registration and proof of insurance, she struggled to follow the simple instructions and handed the deputy a SunPass receipt instead of her insurance card, the report noted.
Winston had bloodshot, watery eyes and slowed, slurred speech. She told the deputy she was traveling from Deltona to Brooksville but could not understand the reason for the traffic stop. She refused to participate in standardized field sobriety exercises and initially refused lawful orders to exit the vehicle. When she finally stepped out, she exhibited a staggered gait and attempted to pull away from the deputy as she was being handcuffed.
During an inventory of the vehicle, the deputy found the cold, open Budweiser beer hidden under her pink bag in the cupholder. He also located another open beer on the passenger floorboard and a partially empty, spilling beer inside her pink bag. An unopened, cold Budweiser was found at the bottom of the bag.
Winston was transported to the Sumter County Detention Center. She initially agreed to provide a breath sample, blowing a 0.281, but then refused to provide a second sample because she claimed she could not see the breathalyzer machine, the report stated.
She was arrested on charges of driving under the influence (third offense outside of 10 years), refusal to submit to a breath test, and resisting an officer without violence. She was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $7,000 bond.
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