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The Queens woman who steered a van full of foster children into oncoming traffic Monday night had alcohol in her system and a crack pipe in her... possession, investigators say. The horrific crash claimed the lives of two of the five children in the van, but driver Sheila Bethea, 45, survived. Yesterday prosecutors charged her with manslaughter, assault, and endangering the welfare of a child. One witness tells the Times the crash "sounded like a truck hit a building."
Bethea’s Mazda minivan crossed a double yellow line on a street in St. Albans and collided with an oncoming Toyota minivan just before 5 p.m. Monday. Police say she was driving 70 mph and two of the children were seated on the floor because the middle row of seats had been removed. It's not clear if those are the two children who died, but the victims have been identified as Catherine Willis, 15, and Melissa Elhmer-Mirra, 5. Another child is in intensive care in a medically induced coma, and the other two girls, a 10-year-old and an 11-year-old, were released from the hospital yesterday. All five girls in the car were foster children in the care of Bethea's mother.
At the hospital, it was discovered that Bethea had hidden a crack pipe, wrapped in tissue, in a body cavity, the Times reports. About an hour and a half after the crash, tests showed that she had a 0.03 percent blood alcohol level, below the 0.08 percent legal definition of intoxication. Six years ago, she was convicted of driving while impaired after she refused to submit to a chemical test, but she regained her license in July. Bethea also had two other priors for possession of crack cocaine, according to WCBS.
After the crash, Bethea was seen "wobbling" around and saying, "I was going too fast, I was going too fast." The Queens DA has issued a search warrant for the blood that was taken from Bethea in order to test for drug use. The passenger in the other minivan sustained a severe head injury and may lose the use of one of her eyes; the driver was treated and released.
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That pussy was SMOKING!
oh my.
Oh you didn't...
BUTT CRACK!!!
Hopefully that pipe broke on impact and hurt her - ALOT.
I'm sure she hid it AFTER the accident, when she knew she was going to be in trouble.
The price of cars should be raised to 400 trillion dollars.
Easy to say for someone who lives on the UES. For many of us who live and work in the outer boroughs, a four hour commute by bus isn't really all that practical.
I don't live on the Upper East Side; I live in Brooklyn, and I take something called "the subway" to work. Sometimes the bus, too. Look into it.
If you can tell me how to take the subway from the southeast Bronx to the northern central section of the Bronx in under two hours, then I'm all ears. If not, STFU.
And for the record, I use my tiny little hatchback exclusively for the purposes of getting to and from work. I ride the subway several times a week, and have probably been doing so for many more years than you.
I hate people... no, I despise.
Darwin smiles upon her.
Well, the drunk driver always survives. PErhaps she will get her driving privilages restored. They always do.
How does someone like that end up with FIVE foster children in her care?
Hooping a crack pipe while driving is tricky, trickier than texting while driving for sure.
That hiding ...practice...was on an episode of Cops!
Not that *I* watch Cops...