Woman sentenced for DUI accidents

McCOOK, Nebraska -- A McCook woman who struck a pair of vehicles while drunk driving in October was fined and sentenced to probation in Red Willow County Court. The offender, 53-year-old Julie A. Thompson was also sentenced to jail time for fleeing the scene at one of the accidents, however, that sentence was suspended until May and can be waived by the court.

Thompson struck a parked pickup on E. Fourth Street at just before 2 a.m. on Oct. 14, 2012, then fled to East J Street before crashing into another parked pickup and subsequently being arrested.

She was originally cited with DUI (.21), as well as for leaving the scene of a property damage accident and refusing to take a preliminary breath test. During a hearing in November, Red Willow County Attorney Paul Wood reduced the drunk driving charge to DUI (.14) and dismissed the refusal violation.

Thompson was sentenced in January 2013 and fined $400, her driver's license was revoked for 60 days and she was ordered to serve 24 months probation on the drunk driving charge.

She was sentenced to 60 days in jail for leaving the scene of an accident, with credit given for one day already served. The jail sentence was suspended until May 2013 and could be waived by the court, according to court documents.

The accident report estimated Thompson caused a combined $6,000 in damage to the vehicles.