There are desperate measures, and then there’s whatever happened inside a Virginia jail when a woman allegedly decided that drinking toilet water mixed with her own urine was preferable to taking a DUI test. Unfortunately for her, the questionable strategy didn’t exactly flush away the evidence.
The bizarre incident involved 43-year-old Erin Elizabeth Hoopes, who reportedly attempted to interfere with a breath test after crashing into a police cruiser. As detailed in The Daily Progress’ reporting, Hoopes allegedly scooped up the contaminated water while in custody, forcing officers to restart a mandatory 20-minute observation period. Her eventual blood alcohol concentration registered 0.26, more than three times Virginia’s legal limit of 0.08.
The incident followed a collision in which Hoopes allegedly drove her red Mini Cooper toward a tow truck before striking a patrol vehicle. An officer identified as Layman reportedly attempted to reverse his cruiser to avoid the approaching car, but the maneuver was unsuccessful. He subsequently pursued Hoopes, who allegedly resisted being handcuffed before being taken to the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail.
How drunk do you need to be to willingly drink toilet water?
Things took an unexpected turn when Hoopes reportedly insisted that she urgently needed to use the restroom. The officer allowed her to go but left the door partially open so he could monitor the sink, having already instructed her not to drink anything…