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A Texas woman has been arrested after allegedly attempting to flee the scene of a drunken crash and abandoning her nine-year-old son, who sustained head injuries so severe part of his skull was showing.
Monica Tutt, 39, was allegedly drunk and speeding when she hit two cars that were parked on the street in Southeast Oak Cliff, in Dallas County. Multiple witnesses investigated after hearing the crash, which left Tutt’s young son in critical condition in hospital.
According to a police affidavit seen by Fox News, the driver – later identified as Tutt – initially tried to flee in the wrecked vehicle but it was too badly damaged.
Tutt’s sister arrived a few minutes after the incident, witnesses say, and the two women pulled an unresponsive boy out of the backseat of the crashed car before trying unsuccessfully to load him into a second vehicle.
When Dallas Fire-Rescue paramedics arrived the two women drove away with another family member, leaving the child behind.
The nine-year-old son was taken to the hospital because of a gash on his head that was so deep his skull was visible, the affidavit said, per Fox. Doctors said he also had air in his brain, a brain bleed, and a fractured skull.
Tutt was later identified and located by police using her license plate and photos the witnesses took of her sister’s license plate. She was found at her sister’s home and taken back to the crash scene for questioning.
"[Tutt] kept saying that her chance at a nursing career was over," according to the affidavit. "[She] kept stating throughout the interview, ‘I did the same thing I always do,’ and ‘I want my son.’"
The officers observed she had "glassy/watery eyes and a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from her breath as she spoke.” Tutt admitted to having been drinking but said she had only had a few drinks. She later failed both a field sobriety test and a preliminary breathalyzer test.
Dallas County jail records say that Tutt was booked on charges of intoxication assault and a collision involving serious bodily injury. Her bail is set at $75,000.
