CF’s DeLaHoz arraigned on DUI, operating with a suspended license charges from Lincoln Police

By DONNA KENNY KIRWAN

PROVIDENCE — Following her arrest two weeks ago on drunk driving and related charges, Central Falls City Councilwoman Eunice D. DeLaHoz was formally arraigned on Friday morning in Providence’s Sixth District Court.

DeLaHoz, 43, appeared with her attorney before Judge Michael Higgins to answer to misdemeanor charges of driving while under the influence — first offense, and operating with a suspended license. She pleaded not guilty and was released on $1,000 personal recognizance. A pre-trial hearing date of July 24 has been set.
When approached outside the courtroom, DeLaHoz said she had no comment to make about the court proceedings or the incident. Her attorney, Steven Crawford, of the Murphy and Fay law firm, also declined to talk about her case or future court date.
DeLaHoz, of 66 Pacific St., is also scheduled to appear at the Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal on July 13 to answer to citations for refusal to submit to a chemical test and a laned roadway violation stemming from the same incident.
DeLaHoz was arrested on the night of June 26 after being pulled over by a Lincoln Police officer who reportedly saw her driving erratically on Great Road. A juvenile male, presumed to be her son, was asleep in the back seat of the car. She told police the car did not belong to her.
According to the police report, when DeLaHoz was stopped by police, she held up a gold badge and informed the officer several times that she was on the City Council in Central Falls. She was also unable to provide a driver’s license, and police later discovered that her license had been suspended last November for failure to appear in court on an unspecified charge.
DeLaHoz told police that she had been coming from a reunion and had consumed three glasses of wine prior to being pulled over at around 11:18 p.m. She failed one of the several field sobriety tests she was given, the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, and declined to take the “walk and turn” test, citing a previous unspecified injury.
After being taken into custody and transported to police headquarters, police said DeLaHoz was asked to take a chemical test, but refused.
DeLaHoz was elected to the Central Falls City Council in February of 2007 in a special election and was re-elected in November of 2007 in an uncontested race. She also serves as chairwoman of the City Council’s Finance Committee.