Gainesville woman arrested for DUI after multiple bystanders intervene

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Cynthia Ann Pagel, 58, was arrested yesterday and charged with DUI and leaving the scene of an accident involving property damage after allegedly hitting a sign and nearly hitting another car on NE 39th Avenue.

At about 6:40 p.m., a Gainesville Police Department officer responded to the intersection of NE 15th Street and NE 31st Avenue, where Pagel was reportedly sitting in her green Honda CRV, which was parked in the middle of the intersection. The officer noted that multiple calls had been received about a green CRV driving erratically, failing to maintain a lane, and hitting a street sign at 1100 NE 39th Avenue.

The officer who first made contact with Pagel reported that he saw her put a fifth of clear liquor, almost empty, in the back of her vehicle as he approached. Her vehicle was reportedly parked on NE 31st Avenue in the crosswalk on the west side of the intersection, in Park and running.

A witness told the officer she was driving westbound on NE 39th Avenue behind the CRV when she saw it swerve off the roadway and hit a road sign. The witness said she followed the CRV for several blocks, trying to get the driver to pull over. She and the other witnesses were reportedly able to get Pagel to stop in the intersection where the officer found the car.

A second witness said she was driving westbound on NE 39th Avenue near NE 15th Street when she saw the CRV hit a sign; she said the driver of the CRV overcorrected and began driving eastbound in the westbound lanes, nearly hitting the witness’s car. She said the CRV came to a complete stop before continuing southbound on NE 15th Street. She followed the CRV and helped the other witnesses get Pagel to stop.

A third witness was driving southbound on NE 15th Street near NE 39th Avenue and saw the CRV drive into the westbound lanes and nearly hit the second witness. The third witness also followed the CRV and helped the others get Pagel to stop.

The officer reported that a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage was apparent as he approached Pagel, and the odor was present on her breath. Pagel reportedly denied being in any traffic accident.

Post Miranda, Pagel reportedly said the CRV was hers and that she had been driving it; she said she was trying to get to Paynes Prairie State Park. She eventually admitted that she’d had “two shots” of alcohol but then reportedly changed her story and said she had been in her car and had been drinking, but she was not driving and her car was simply parked in the middle of the intersection. She reportedly provided no explanation for how the car got into the intersection but kept saying she wanted to get back in the car and continue driving to Paynes Prairie State Park. She was reportedly adamant that she was parked and it is not a crime to be intoxicated in a parked vehicle.

Pagel reportedly performed poorly on field sobriety exercises and refused to perform several of them.

The damage to the street sign is estimated at $1,500.

Breath tests at the jail reportedly produced readings of .304 g/210L and .301 g/210L, over 3.5 times the legal limit.

Pagel has one felony conviction (violent) and seven misdemeanor convictions (one violent). She has served one state prison sentence and was released in June 2023. She was committed to a state mental hospital for about six months in 2021 while awaiting trial on an aggravated stalking charge; she eventually entered a plea of nolo contendere to the charge. She did not successfully complete drug offender probation and was sentenced to 26 months in prison.

Judge Jonathan Ramsey ordered her released on her own recognizance with a requirement for a Transdermal Alcohol Monitor.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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