A Florida woman’s explanation for speeding was that her friend desperately needed a bathroom, and she didn’t want the passenger using her car seat. That excuse is now part of a widely viewed bodycam video involving a 2024 Hyundai Elantra, a DUI investigation, and a criminal case that recently took another turn.
Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Investigator Lester Escaran clocked the gray Hyundai at 67 mph in a 40 mph zone on July 26, 2026. The driver apologized, explaining that her friend’s house was just down the street. The traffic stop soon became a DUI investigation after the deputy reported smelling alcohol.
The driver, identified as 24-year-old Ashley Baluja of Boynton Beach, told the deputy she had consumed a cup of wine hours earlier. She refused roadside sobriety exercises, insisted she knew her rights because she worked for a law firm, and suggested the deputy follow her to her friend’s house instead. The encounter ended with her arrest…