The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office arrested Maria Parson, 73, on Tuesday on DUI charges, Tampa Free Press reported. The outlet said a test recorded her blood-alcohol content at .244, compared with Florida’s .08 legal threshold.
Tampa Free Press reported that deputies observed Parson driving erratically near Tradewinds Plaza at about 3:50 p.m. Her Toyota came close to people on foot and another vehicle in the plaza, the outlet said. It reported that she then entered U.S. 1 against traffic after going through a red signal, and deputies stopped her shortly after the turn. The outlet said she appeared heavily intoxicated when officers approached. No one was injured, according to the report.
Florida DUI penalties
Florida Statute 316.193 sets .08 grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood as one statutory DUI criterion. Under Florida Statute 316.1934, a blood- or breath-alcohol level of .08 or higher is prima facie evidence of impairment.
The article’s cited account notes that a DUI conviction involving a blood- or breath-alcohol level of .15 or higher can carry enhanced penalties under Statute 316.193. For a first conviction, those penalties include a fine of $1,000 to $2,000 and up to nine months in prison. The incident details above are based on Tampa Free Press’s report, not independent confirmation.
Alcohol-confirmed crashes in Monroe County
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles lists 38 alcohol-confirmed crashes in Monroe County in 2024, up from 28 in 2023 and down from 46 in 2022. These countywide statistics do not establish that Parson’s reported incident involved a crash.
