Pelham schools closed after mom driving drunk hits pole, police say
Mother was driving with two kids in car, police say
Schools in Pelham were closed Wednesday after a crash knocked out power and brought down electrical lines in front of the high school.
A mother faces drunken driving charges after she allegedly crashed into a utility pole in Pelham late Tuesday night with her two children in the car, according to authorities.
Police said a woman from Lowell, Massachusetts, was responsible. Tanisha Rivera, 32, was accused of driving drunk with her two children, ages 12 and 7, in the car.
Officials said Rivera struck a utility pole on Marsh Road just before midnight. The crash knocked out power to two-thirds of the town, police said.
In court, prosecutor Michael McCall said Rivera shouldn't have been driving.
"She lost her driver's license in Massachusetts for what appears to be a drug-related offense," McCall said. "She just got it back on a permit basis, but subsequently, it was suspended."
Rivera's children were taken to a hospital. Police said the 7-year-old had minor injuries, but the 12-year-old might have a broken bone. Officials said that could mean more serious charges might get filed against Rivera.
"Should those turn out to meet the definition of serious bodily injury, this may make it up to a felony DWI," McCall said.
School officials said the district had to be closed for the day because of the lack of power and because the wires blocking the road made it impossible to get children to school.
The district said the last day of school will be pushed back to June 16 to make up for the closure.
Prosecutors asked that bail be set at $5,000, calling Rivera a danger to the community and a flight risk, something she disputed.
"I'm definitely not a flight risk, and I am a single mother raising two kids, so $5,000 is a little expensive," she said.
The judge set bail at $5,000. A trial is scheduled for Oct. 22.
Prosecutors said they would seek to recover the costs of the emergency response from Rivera. There was no word on how much that would be.
Rivera said her children are with their father, but the judge asked that police get in touch with the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families.