Teen faces aggravated DWI charge after allegedly crashing stolen sheriff vehicle
- The juvenile kicked out a door window of the patrol vehicle and took control of the truck.
- She struck three other vehicles while driving.
- She was in critical condition at the San Juan Regional Medical Center as of Monday evening.
FARMINGTON — A 16-year-old female was in critical condition after she allegedly stole a San Juan County Sheriff's Office patrol vehicle and later crashed the vehicle near a Farmington truck stop.
The unidentified juvenile is accused of charges including aggravated DWI with bodily injury, unlawful taking of a motor vehicle and reckless driving, according to Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Jayme Harcow.
A deputy for the Sheriff's Office was flagged down around 6:30 p.m. Monday by a woman regarding her intoxicated daughter on the Bloomfield Highway near Valentine Road, east of the South Browning Parkway and Bloomfield Highway intersection, according to a sheriff's office Facebook post.
The juvenile was lying on the side of the highway, and the deputy secured her in the back of the patrol vehicle. She was not in custody at that point.
While the deputy was speaking to the mother, the juvenile allegedly kicked out a window in a door of the truck and took control of the vehicle, according to Harcow.
The juvenile is accused of driving the vehicle westbound on the Bloomfield Highway and striking three other vehicles.
She crashed the vehicle near the intersection of the Bloomfield Highway and Resource Road on the north side of the road, across the highway from the Bubble City truck stop.
A male witness ran across the Bloomfield Highway to the crashed vehicle to check on the occupant.
Brian Francisco called dispatch and stated the juvenile was alive but injured.
Francisco also grabbed a shotgun the juvenile was holding. The shotgun was dislodged from a lock in the vehicle during the crash, according to the Facebook post.
She was transported to the San Juan Regional Medical Center and was listed in critical condition Monday evening. Harcow did not have an update on the condition of the juvenile this afternoon.
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