MIAMI – A man told a state trooper that he was traveling southbound on the Turnpike’s Homestead Extension in Miami-Dade County when a speeding car passed him while swerving in and out of lanes, records show. The man reported he saw the blue Honda Civic crash into the back of the white Chevrolet Colorado that was ahead of him and after avoiding a chain reaction crash stopped to help both drivers, records show. The man told the trooper that when he helped Laurie Garcia, 29, out of her crashed Honda Civic in a ditch she reeked of alcohol and “was slurring her words,” according to an arrest report. Nearly a month later, on Tuesday, Garcia appeared in Miami-Dade bond court facing charges for the early morning crash that injured her and the man and the woman who were in the Chevrolet Colorado. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a trooper saw Garcia “stumbling and unable to keep her balance,” also “laying down and staring up toward the sky several times” and “unable to stand up” after the crash at about 1:35 a.m., on Feb. 15. While at the hospital nearly two hours later, the FHP trooper reported Garcia was “continuously falling asleep and slurring her words,” and although she “declined to answer any questions,” she allowed a blood draw. According to an arrest report in the case, FHP received the University of Miami’s forensic toxicology lab report on Thursday showing blood alcohol levels of .198 and .196, more than twice the state’s legal limit. Records show troopers arrested Garcia at about 3:50 p.m., on Monday, at the Florida Highway Patrol Troop K Post 1 Station, and Miami-Dade correctional deputies booked her shortly before 5:10 p.m., at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. On Tuesday, prosecutors filed a felony case against Garcia for one count of causing serious bodily injury while driving under the influence. FHP also issued a traffic citation for careless driving. Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge William Altfied was set to preside over the case. The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.
