San Angelo woman indicted after alcohol-related crash leads to children endangered, assault
UPDATE: A bottle of tequila at a crash that injured children has led to an indictment against a San Angelo woman, according to court documents released Monday, Jan. 24, 2022.
An indictment, filed Jan. 6, charged Tiana Lee Hennings with driving while intoxicated with a child under 15 years old and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
The assault charges are second degree felonies punishable by up to 20 years in jail and a fine not to exceed $10,000. The intoxication charge is a state jail felony with a punishment range of 180 days to 2 years in jail.
A court date has not been scheduled as of 4 p.m. Monday, according to online court re
ORIGINAL REPORT: SAN ANGELO — A San Angelo woman is facing multiple counts of child endangerment after an open bottle of tequila was found at the site of a crash, according to arrest affidavits released Wednesday.
About 9:06 p.m. Friday, Sept. 24, 2021, a trooper with the Department of Public Safety arrived at a two-vehicle crash on US Hwy 87 near mile marker 474, records state.
The driver of a 2017 Toyota SUV, which was carrying two child passengers younger than 8 years old, failed to yield at a stop sign. The Toyota crashed into a 2013 GMC SUV carrying five people — three of whom were children younger than 15 years old, according to the affidavits.
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The trooper noted an open bottle of tequila on the ground near the Toyota as its driver and passengers were taken to Shannon Medical Center. At the hospital, the trooper attempted to speak to the driver, records state.
The driver smelled of alcohol, had red, blood shot eyes and slurred while speaking, which led the trooper to believe alcohol was involved in the crash, according to the affidavits.
Tiana Lee Hennings, AKA Thornton, was arrested on Friday on suspicion of two counts each of endangering a child with imminent bodily injury and driving while intoxicated with a child younger than 15 years old. She was released later that day on a $60,000 bond, according to online jail records.
On Wednesday, Thornton was arrested on additional charges related to the crash.
Further investigation revealed the three children passengers in the GMC also received injuries from the crash. Hennings was charged with three counts of endangering a child by criminal negligence. She remained in Tom Green County Detention Center in lieu of a $30,000 bond as of 8:45 a.m. Wednesday, according to online jail records.
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Alana Edgin is a journalist covering Crime and Courts in West Texas. Send her a news tip at aedgin@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on San Angelo Standard-Times: San Angelo woman indicted after DWI crash endangers 5 children
