People v. Meridith CA3

I. BACKGROUND

On June 10, 2019, around 11:00 a.m., California Highway Patrol responded to the report of a car accident. When they arrived, patrol officers saw a car stuck in a metal fence on the side of the road. Defendant was the driver of the car. The hood of the car

1 was dented, the windshield broken, the roof and grill of the car were crushed, and the air bags deployed. The responding officer approached the car where defendant was being treated by medical personnel. When the officer reached defendant, he could smell “burnt marijuana” emanating from the car. He also noticed defendant’s eyelids were “extremely droopy.” Defendant could not explain how she lost control of her car, neither did she know how fast she was going when she did. As they talked, the officer observed defendant’s speech was “labored and slow,” her movements “slow and deliberate.” He saw several prescription bottles in the center console and in the back seat of the car. Defendant denied taking any drugs or consuming any alcohol that morning. Defendant “failed to perform field sobriety tests as instructed and demonstrated.” Additionally, two preliminary alcohol screening tests indicated defendant had a…