Leandra's Law: Man Drives Drunk On Thruway With 2 Kids In Car In Orange County, Police Say

A 26-year-old man was charged with felony DWI in violation of Leandra's Law after he was caught driving drunk on the Thruway in the Hudson Valley with both a 6-year-old and 7-year-old in the car with him, police said.

Sanchez Ayala was discovered to be driving drunk with two children in the car on I-87 in Cornwall, police said.
Photo Credit: *Google Maps street view/Pixabay via Steve Buissinne*

Ben Crnic

07/30/2023 4:00 p.m.

Brooklyn resident Juan O. Sanchez Ayala, age 26, was arrested in Orange County on Sunday, July 23 on felony drunk driving charges, according to state police.

On the day of Sanchez Ayala's arrest, just before 2 a.m., state troopers pulled over his vehicle on I-87 in Cornwall after he allegedly committed a vehicle and traffic violation.

Trooper then discovered that Sanchez Ayala was drunk and traveling with a 6-year-old and a 7-year-old in the car, and took him into custody. He was taken to state police headquarters in Newburgh, where his blood alcohol content was found to be 0.10 percent.

The two children who had been in Sanchez Ayala's vehicle were turned over to the third party following his arrest.

Sanchez Ayala was ultimately charged with driving while intoxicated with a child in the vehicle, a felony. He was turned over to a third party and will appear in the Town of Cornwall Court on Wednesday, Aug. 16.

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