Last spring, a woman was arrested and charged with drunk driving after allegedly yanking the steering wheel and causing the car to collide with a median on the freeway. She admitted to the officer that she was intoxicated, and a later chemical test showed her to have a blood alcohol limit above the legal limit. The only thing that makes this story different than any other DUI arrest is this: the woman was not actually driving the car at the time.

According to police reports, the 22-year-old spent the evening out at a bar with friends to celebrate her birthday. She got in the passenger seat of her friend's car and headed for home. While traveling on the interstate, the woman reportedly reached over to the driver's side and yanked the steering wheel of the vehicle, causing it to veer sharply to the side and strike the median of the freeway.

A police officer that noticed the incident pulled the car over. He allegedly noticed a smell of alcohol in the car and questioned the driver, who informed him that the woman had grabbed the steering wheel and caused the minor crash. The other two friends in the rear seat corroborated the story, and the officer questioned the woman. She admitted that she was intoxicated, but pointed out one important detail: she was not driving the car when the incident occurred.

The officer apparently thought nothing of that point and arrested her for DUI. In the criminal complaint, he states that she was in physical control of the car when she yanked the steering wheel. She now faces two felony counts of criminal vehicular operation, and is expected to make her first court appearance later this month.

Source: UPI, "Minn. woman wasn't driving but faces DUI," Dec. 1, 2011