TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - A Tallahassee woman is facing child endangerment and DUI charges after police say she was driving erratically with a 4-month-old infant in the front seat.
According to an arrest document, Leon County deputies were patrolling the area near the intersection of Appleyard Drive and West Pensacola Street around 9 p.m. on Feb. 5 when they spotted a car swerving in the far right lane of Appleyard Drive.
Deputies say one of the front tires was flat and the vehicle was failing to stay in a lane, almost side swiping several vehicles and hitting a curb. As deputies pulled behind the vehicle, the front tire "disintegrated" and began sparking due to the rim scrapping against the road.
Documents say the car continued to swerve through the northbound lanes on Appleyard Drive, traveling around 45 mph. Authorities then activated their emergency lights and the car eventually came to a stop.
When deputies spoke to the driver, 35-year-old Felisha Gavin, they noticed the "obvious odor of an alcoholic beverage" coming from inside the car. Documents say a green can with the word "Margarita" was clearly visible in the cup holder beside Gavin as well as an empty bottle of liquor in on the floorboard.
A 4-month-old child was also buckled into a car seat in the front passenger seat of the vehicle.
Deputies asked Gavin to get out of the car, and when she did, they noticed the smell of alcohol coming from Gavin's person and breath as she spoke. When asked how much she had to drink, she stated, "a lot," and refused to do field sobriety exercises saying, "I don't want to because I know I'm going to fail."
A check of Gavin's information revealed that her license was revoked in 2016 and was labeled a habitual traffic offender.
Based on the evidence, Gavin was arrested for driving without a valid license (habitual), DUI and child endangerment. She was also issued a traffic citation for driving without a valid license, open container, and DUI.
