Child hurt in crash caused by drunken driver
By Erin Guerra Post-Tribune correspondent November 7, 2012 12:38PM
Scott Adams. | Provided photo~Sun-Times Media
Updated: December 9, 2012 7:32PM
PORTER COUNTY — A 4-year-old girl was airlifted to a Chicago hospital after an allegedly drunken driver crashed into her mother’s car Monday night.
Initially, she was crying but appeared to have no serious injuries, police said, but Porter Regional Hospital emergency room staff found her lungs were filling with blood. She was transported to Lurie Children’s Hospital, formerly Children’s Memorial Hospital, for treatment of extensive internal injuries.
Meanwhile, Scott Adams, 21, of rural Valparaiso, was arrested for felony drunken driving causing serious injury, along with three misdemeanor drunken driving charges.
The crash happened about 10 p.m. on County Road 950N, a short distance south of the Indiana Toll Road and west of Indiana 49.
Dorothy Schmieder, 47, of Burns Harbor, had just picked up her daughter from friend Meghan Santiago’s house and was backing out of the driveway. Schmieder said she saw another vehicle coming fast westbound. She told police she was shifting into drive when the vehicle struck.
The crash spun both vehicles to face eastbound and sent Adams’ vehicle, which had heavy front-end damage, off the road.
According to police, Adams blamed Schmieder for the crash, saying her vehicle’s lights were off; Schmieder and Santiago, who witnessed the crash from inside her home, said Schmieder’s lights were on.
Adams failed field sobriety tests and his blood-alcohol level was at 0.128 percent, police said.
