A silver BMW sheared off a telephone pole that landed on the vehicle in a recent traffic accident that led to the arrest of the driver on suspicion of driving under the influence.
The incident occurred Friday, July 10 according to Santa Paula Police Sgt. Jeremy Watson.
At approximately 2:07 a.m., SPPD Officers were dispatched to a traffic collision “involving a single vehicle into a utility pole with the vehicle overturned,” in the area of Main Street and Dean Drive.
Watson said that when officers reached the scene they found the driver of the BMW out of the car and nearby; the driver, 26-year-old Efrain Alaniz of Santa Paula, was not injured.
Watson said, “Alaniz told the investigating officer that he believed an animal ran out in front of his vehicle and he swerved to the right to avoid hitting it. In doing so, Alaniz collided head on with several fixed objects,” including severing a telephone pole before the BMW overturned and came to rest on its roof.
During the subsequent investigation, it was determined Alaniz had consumed alcohol prior to the collision.
“He voluntarily submitted to a preliminary alcohol screening of his breath,” which Watson said, “resulted in his Blood Alcohol Concentration being above the legal limit of .08 percent.”
Alaniz was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence and was transported to the SPPD Station for booking.
Watson said that as a result of the collision, Main Street was shut down between Steckel Drive and Dean Drive “for several hours while telephone and cable crews replaced the utility pole.”
