MARION COUNTY, Fla. — A Marion County woman was arrested Tuesday, accused of driving under the influence of alcohol with two young children in the car with her.
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According to a report, the investigation started just after 8 p.m. Tuesday after the Marion County Sheriff’s Office received a call from a person reporting a reckless driver on East Highway 40 failing to maintain a single lane.
A deputy eventually spotted the maroon Kia sedan traveling eastbound on the highway into oncoming traffic.
According to the report, the deputy made a U-turn to begin following the car and witnessed the driver drifting within their lane before passing another car in a non-passing zone.
That’s when the deputy says they activated their lights and siren and attempted to stop the driver in the 15000 block of E Highway 40 in Silver Springs.
According to the report, the driver continued eastbound on Highway 40 and ran a red light as they turned northbound onto NE Highway 314 A before eventually stopping in a nearby gas station parking lot.
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Once stopped, the deputy made contact with the driver, identified as 22-year-old Celeste Cobarris.
According to the report, the deputy immediately recognized signs of impairment, including slurred speech and red, watery eyes. The deputy also noted the smell of alcohol coming from inside the car.
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The deputy says they then saw two children in the car and noted one of them was walking around unsecured in the back seat at the beginning of the traffic stop. According to the report, at one point, Cobarris picked the second child up out of a car seat and began trying to feed him, even after being told not to.
When the deputy asked Cobarris to put the child back into the car seat, they said Cobarris dropped the child, causing him to hit his head on the car seat before falling onto the seat in the sedan.
When asked for her driver’s license, the report says Cobarris instead handed the deputy a package of air fresheners and admitted to having consumed alcohol.
According to the report, Cobarris went on to fail a series of field sobriety tests before she was arrested and taken to the Marion County jail.
While at the jail, deputies say Cobarris agreed to provide a breath sample, which produced a breath alcohol level of .152. A second sample tested even higher, according to the report.
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Cobarris was ultimately arrested and charged with two counts of child neglect without great bodily harm and driving under the influence.
She was also issued traffic citations for DUI, improper passing, and failing to stop at a steady red light.
Cobarris has since been released from the Marion County jail after posting a totalof $6,000 bond.
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