ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE
Case # 16CF3123
Date: December 13, 2016
DRUNKEN DRIVER CHARGED WITH CRASHING INTO POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS STANDING BEHIND PATROL VEHICLE
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A drunken driver was charged today with crashing into a police officer who was standing behind his patrol vehicle on a residential street. Ashley Victoria Bertolino, 27, Tustin, is charged with one felony count of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs causing bodily injury, one felony count of driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury, and one felony count of driving with a blood alcohol level of .08% or more causing bodily injury, with sentencing enhancements for inflicting great bodily injury. If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of six years in state prison. The defendant is scheduled for a continued arraignment on Jan. 6, 2017, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana.
At approximately 3:00 a.m. on Dec. 10, 2016, three officers from the Orange Police Department (OPD) responded to a call for service on a residential street. While at the scene, Officer Doe stood near the back of his patrol vehicle, which was parked alongside the curb, to gather paperwork. Bertolino is accused of having a blood alcohol level of .13 percent and being under the influence of drugs while driving 40 mph in a 25 mph zone. The defendant is accused of drifting towards the curb and crashing into Officer Doe and the back of his patrol vehicle. The other officers at the scene ran to assist Officer Doe, who was underneath Bertolino’s vehicle, and the defendant is accused of exiting her vehicle. Bertolino was detained by OPD officers until officers from the California Highway Patrol (CHP), who investigated this case, arrived on scene.
Officer Doe was transported to a local hospital and remains hospitalized with major injuries. Bertolino was evaluated at a local hospital and arrested the following morning by CHP.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Jess Rodriguez of the Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting this case.
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TONY RACKAUCKAS, District Attorney
Susan Kang Schroeder, Chief of Staff
Office: 714-347-8408
Cell: 714-292-2718
Public Affairs Unit
Office: 714-347-8405
