A 25-year-old driver who was nearly five times over the legal limit is facing several DUI charges, including vehicular DUI homicide, after allegedly causing a crash at a Winter Springs intersection that claimed the life of a wife and mother of three.
The fatal crash occurred at the intersection of State Road 434 and Vistawilla Drive in Winter Springs on Tuesday, May 21. At around 10:45 a.m. that morning, officers arrived at the scene of the accident and observed two vehicles: a white Toyota facing westbound in the eastbound lanes of State Road 434 and a white Honda facing northeast in the westbound lane of the same roadway, according to the arrest report.
The report stated that there was a “substantial amount of damage” to the Toyota’s front-end, and the Honda had a “substantial amount of driver’s door damage.”
The driver of the Honda, identified as Tiffany Alexander, was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced deceased.
The Toyota’s driver was identified as Asnubil Roberta Escobar. The report stated that her breath had an “odor of [an] alcoholic beverage.” In addition, she had slurred speech, and her eyes were “red, glossy, and bloodshot.”
Escobar was taken to a hospital for a medical evaluation, where a Winter Springs Police Department sergeant made contact with her. After being read her Miranda rights at the hospital, she stated that she had “one shot” and “one mixed drink” at a local bar earlier that morning.
During the post-Miranda interview, Escobar stated that she went to a friend’s home after leaving the bar. She advised that she left her friend’s residence at around 9:40 a.m. and traveled on State Road 434 towards her place of employment. She added that she was “running late.”
The report stated that Escobar is a bartender and manager at a restaurant in Sanford.
The sergeant spoke with a witness who was in a vehicle that was traveling behind Tiffany Alexander shortly before the crash occurred. The witness stated that they were both traveling on Vistawilla Drive, waiting for the green light to turn westbound on State Road 434.
According to the witness, the light turned green, and Alexander waited a few seconds before entering the intersection. Moments later, a second vehicle that was “traveling at a high rate of speed” struck the driver’s side of Alexander’s vehicle.
The report stated that two of Alexander’s young children were in her vehicle at the time of the accident. One of the children sustained injuries that were described as “minor.”
The police department obtained a search warrant to obtain medical records for blood alcohol and any medical blood drawn at the hospital. Shortly after the search warrant was signed, Escobar’s blood was drawn, revealing that she had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.386 grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood.
At around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 22, Escobar was arrested and transported to Seminole County Jail. She is being charged with vehicular DUI, unlawful blood alcohol causing injury, unlawful blood alcohol (.08 or more), and unlawful blood alcohol with property damage.
An arraignment will be held at 1:30 p.m. on July 23, 2024, according to Seminole County court records.