X-Ray Technician Arrested for DWI after Fleeing Accident Scene

Around 5:14 AM on December 10, 2022, Patrolman Brian Parigi of the Pequannock Township Police Department was flagged down by the 25-year-old driver of a pickup truck in the vicinity of Newark Pompton Turnpike and Edward Avenue. The woman informed Patrolman Parigi that another driver had struck a road directional sign marking Route 635 and fled the scene. She had followed the driver to a residence on Newark Pompton Turnpike, and then returned to the scene of the accident to flag down a Police car. Patrolman Parigi followed the pickup truck to the residence. He noted down the witness’s information while confirming that the same vehicle was indeed parked in the driveway of the residence. As he approached the residence, Patrolman Benjamin Kohle arrived to assist. The officers proceeded to notify dispatch that they would make contact with that residence. Upon entering the driveway, they found a 2020 Volkswagen with significant front-end damage matching the earlier witness description. Officers would later retrieve a missing piece of a bumper near the damaged sign which matched the vehicle identified by the witness as being at the scene. As Patrolman Parigi approached the front residence, 25-year-old Angela Iurato opened the front door and walked outside. He asked Angela if she had been driving the vehicle, and she admitted to doing so. She told the officers that she was coming from her friend’s residence in Sloatsburg, New York (21 miles away), and admitted to consuming alcohol. Patrolman Parigi detected the odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from Angela, and she was unable to answer Patrolman Kohle’s question about the damaged road sign by responding “I don’t know.” Given the officers’ suspicion of intoxication, they offered her an opportunity to perform voluntary field sobriety exercises. The first exercise was the recitation of the alphabet from B to K, which she was initially unable to perform without stopping. The second exercise was counting backwards from 52 to 36, but she counted the “42” twice and continued to count till 31. The third exercise was the Finger Dexterity test, and she displayed slow and deliberate hand movements while failing to count out loud. The fourth exercise was Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test, and that was performed by Patrolman Kohle. Patrolman Kohle observed a lack of smooth pursuit, distinct and sustained nystagmus at maximum deviation, and the onset of nystagmus prior to 45 degrees in both eyes. He also observed vertical nystagmus. The fifth exercise involved the Walk and Turn test, and Angela was unable to walk in a straight line, walked 12 steps instead of the 8 she was instructed to walk, and she performed an improper turn. The final exercise involved the One Leg Stand test, and Angela was unable to maintain her balance or count out loud. Based on her admission to consuming alcohol and her inability to adequately perform the field sobriety exercises, Patrolman Parigi placed Angela under arrest for driving under the influence. Since the Alcotest machine was not functioning at their own police station, she was instead transported to the Lincoln Park Police Headquarters. At Lincoln Park Police HQ, Patrolman Parigi read her the Standard Statement for Operations of a Motor Vehicle, and she agreed to take the breathalyzer test. The breathalyzer test results indicated a BAC of %, more than double the legal limit. After Angela took the breathalyzer, she was taken to Pequannock Township Police HQ around 6:30 AM for further processing. After processing, she was released to a responsible party after they signed the Potential Liability Warning form on her behalf. She was issued the following summonses: Operating under the influence, reckless driving, leaving the scene of an accident involving property damage, and traffic on marked lanes On 3/13/2023, Angela pleaded guilty to operating under the influence and she was fined a total of $640. Her license was not revoked, but she was ordered to use an ignition interlock device for 12 months while spending 12 hours at an Intoxicated Driver Resource Center. The other citations were all dismissed in exchange for a guilty plea to operating under the influence as part of a plea agreement. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and consider making a donation to support this channel on Venmo (Account name: drive-thru-tours). Donations will be used to acquire more public footage related to law enforcement activities. Our content is educational and in compliance with YouTube’s Fair Use Policy because we edit several long clips into a concise story. This is similar to other law enforcement channels on YouTube. All videos and case documents were obtained pursuant to the New Jersey Open Public Records Act, . 47:1A-1 et seq. (P.L. 2001, c. 404). Defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty.