Dawn Carter (PHOTO: Henrico Police)
HENRICO COUNTY, Va. -- The woman who drove through the front of a Glen Allen Chipotle on Virginia Center Parkway, backed up and then drove away told a judge in Henrico that she panicked. Dawn Carter, 48, of Spring Tree Court, was charged with DWI and hit and run after police stopped and arrested her following the Sunday night crash.
In court Monday, the prosecutor detailed Carter’s history of DUI. She has been arrested twice within five years. The judge said Carter, who had a blood alcohol content of .07 when police stopped her, admitted that in addition to having had alcohol the day of the crash, that she had also taken medication.
When the prosecutor explained how Carter left the scene of Sunday's crash, the judge revoked her bond. During the hearing, Carter held her hands to her face, cried and repeatedly said the words “Oh, Jesus.”
Carter called her boyfriend from jail Sunday night. He drove to Henrico from Charlotte, North Carolina to attend Monday's hearing. He said the phone call with Carter was very quick and he did not know why she was in jail until he attended the hearing.
After the hearing, Carter's boyfriend said he supported her.
"She is a good person, don’t get me wrong. I just don’t know all of the facts of the story," he said. "I want her to know that I love her and I’ll be there for her."
Her boyfriend, who declined to give his name, said he was aware Carter took medication for sleep issues.
"This is the first time I’m hearing this," he continued. "I drove six hours from North Carolina with no sleep to hear this."
Witness accounts helped police identify Carters’ vehicle after it crashed into Chipotle. Police stopped her vehicle near Virginia Center Commons Mall, less than one mile from the restaurant.
Inside the restaurant, no one was hurt in the crash. Customers Katlyn Farmer captured video of the car as it backed out of the restaurant.
"Was eating at Chipotle and a Hyundai Sonata just crashed through… near Virginia Center Commons,” Farmer said.
Carter, who told the judge she planned to hire her own attorney, was order back to court on January 4.
The Chipotle re-opened for business Monday.
