Open Bottle of Tequila Found at Crash Scene Where Small Children Were Hospitalized

SAN ANGELO  – A Tom Green County woman is facing serious charges after she allegedly rolled her vehicle, with her children inside, while being drunk on tequila Friday night.

According to incident reports, on Sep. 24 at around 9 p.m., a trooper with the Department of Public Safety was dispatched to the intersection of U.S. Hwy 87 S. and Broadnax Rd. for the report of a rollover crash with people trapped inside.

When the trooper arrived, he discovered a 2013 GMC SUV and a 2017 Toyota SUV that had crashed. Reporters on scene observed that the Toyota had flipped on its side. The original report on the crash is here.

The GMC was occupied by five people and none of them were injured. In the Toyota the driver, Tiana Thornton, 35, of Tom Green County and her two children under the age of 8 were taken to Shannon Medical Center for treatment for unknown injuries.

During the crash investigation the trooper determined that the Toyota caused the crash by failing to yield the right of way at a stop sign. On the scene, the trooper found an open bottle of tequila on the ground near the Toyota.

The trooper interviewed Thornton after the crash. He claims that he smelled alcohol on her person. He attempted to question her about the odor but she refused to answer any questions.

Instead, the trooper claimed that Thornton would talk about random things that did not make sense to him and that she was slurring her words. He asked for a blood specimen but she refused.

Thornton was arrested that night and charged with driving while intoxicated with a child under the age of 15 and two counts of abandoning or endangering a child causing imminent danger or bodily injury. She was booked into the Tom Green County Jail on Sep. 25 and was released the same day after posting a $60,000 bond.

She was then re-booked into the Tom Green County Jail on Sep. 29 on three counts of abandoning or endangering a child by criminal negligence.