Drunk Driver Plows Into Deputy's Patrol Car, Officials Say

A suspected drunk driver picked the wrong car to plow into Tuesday night — a Manatee County Sheriff's deputy's cruiser.

Deputy Scott Schell's patrol vehicle was parked in the 1100 block of 61st Avenue East in Bradenton around 9:18 p.m. Tuesday when another vehicle crashed head-on into him, according to a sheriff's report.

Schell had just completed a call for service when the other car, headed east on 61st Avenue East, "unexpectedly crossed the center line" and plowed into the cruiser.

There was no immediate report of injuries.

During the subsequent investigation, it was suspected that the driver, 43-year-old Israel Lara-Contreras, of Bradenton, was under the influence, deputies say.

The traffic unit was already on the scene, and a test revealed Lara-Contreras' blood-alcohol level was between .355 and .357.

The legal limit in Florida is .08.

Schell's patrol vehicle suffered about $3,000 in damage and Lara-Contreras' vehicle about $2,000, according to the report. Both vehicles had to be towed from the scene.