A Texas mother is behind bars after she was pulled over on suspicion of driving under the influence and told cops was on her way to pick up her five-month-old baby — but the child was actually in the backseat.
Ivana Dolores Salazar, 27, was driving through El Paso on Sunday when officers pulled her over after she failed to signal for a lane change, reported El Paso County Sheriff Oscar Ugarte.
When officers stopped her, Ugarte said Salazar identified herself and told them she was on her way from work to pick up her baby. Salazar had a “clear glass cup containing an unknown red liquid,” Ugarte reported, and officers had a “reasonable suspicion” she was drunk, he noted.
Salazar also said there was no one else in the car with her. But when officers searched her vehicle they discovered the baby in a car seat that “was not properly secured,” Ugarte said.
Officers asked Salazar again about the child, and she told them she was on her way to pick up the baby. But when officers walked her to her car’s backseat and showed her the child, Salazar “became uncooperative” and said she didn’t know the baby was with her, police said.
Salazar is now in the El Paso County Jail with a bond of $23,000. Her baby was taken to the Hospitals of Providence East Campus in El Paso, and Child Protective Services have been notified.
She faces charges of driving while intoxicated with a passenger under 15 years of age and endangering a child.
The Independent was unable to identify Salazar’s attorney for comment. The Independent has contacted the District Attorney’s Office for more information.
