Wrong-Way Driver Busted, 'Didn't Want to Go to NJ'

Alleged drunk driver in NYC drops burn on the Garden State
By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 17, 2015 3:02 PM CDT
Wrong-Way Driver Busted, 'Didn't Want to Go to NJ'
   (Shutterstock)

A 34-year-old fashion designer allegedly drove the wrong way in traffic, riding onto the sidewalk to skirt a Port Authority officer and nearly hitting five vehicles, all in what she told police was a valiant effort to avoid going to New Jersey, the New York Daily News reports. Police say Tonnie Schaus—who has worked with Victoria's Secret, Anne Klein, and Club Monaco—illegally turned her BMW around to avoid entering the Holland Tunnel on Monday night, then drove the wrong way down multiple streets before an officer was able to block her path with a patrol car, according to Gothamist.

Schaus, who showed signs of being drunk, allegedly told police she was driving against traffic because she "didn't want to go to New Jersey," Gothamist reports. According to the Daily News, she also told the arresting officers to "hurry up" because she had "a lot of things to do tomorrow." Police say Schaus failed three sobriety tests and told officers "I didn't do that yet" when they found three vials of suspected cocaine in her car, Gothamist adds. Schauss has been charged with resisting arrest, DUI, reckless driving, and refusal to take a breathalyzer; no charges have been filed in connection with her sick burn on the Garden State. A 58-year-old man in her passenger seat is facing drug charges. (More weird crimes stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X