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Bystander can't get keys, but gets child out of car
By ABHI RAGHUNATHAN
Published February 22, 2007
ST. PETERSBURG - The woman stumbled out of the Macaroni Grill on Tuesday afternoon, followed by a little girl. Assistant fire Chief Michael Wallace, waiting in his car to pick up some salads, saw the woman stagger through the parking lot. She fell. She cursed. She got up, but soon collapsed again. Finally, she made her way to an old Dodge sedan with the young girl. To Wallace, she was clearly drunk. And she was ready to drive away. Wallace has worked in fire and rescue units for nearly a quarter-century. He's seen the aftermath of drunken drivers: mangled cars, broken bones, broken lives. He didn't want it to happen again. Some restaurant employees came out. "Don't let her drive!" they begged the man in uniform. Wallace, 51, an assistant fire chief with Seminole Fire and Rescue, didn't know the woman. But he could see she couldn't even walk in a straight line. Wallace got out of his unmarked car and asked the woman to give up her keys. "Don't drive. We'll get you a ride home," he told her. The woman responded with an expletive and got in the 1990 Dodge. The girl followed her in. Wallace tried reasoning with the woman, but she didn't listen. He tried reaching for her keys, but she swung at him and missed. Wallace summoned his most authoritative voice and told the girl inside: "You need to get out of the car now." The girl obeyed him. As she got out, the woman started the car and began driving through the parking lot, one car door still open, leaving the girl at the restaurant at 2302 Tyrone Blvd. N. Wallace isn't a police officer. He can't arrest people. So he radioed fire dispatchers, telling them to contact police, and took off after the woman. She hit a car in the parking lot, then struck another vehicle during the two-minute drive to her home. She pulled up to a condominium complex, got out of her car and collapsed on the lawn. The woman Wallace followed was Michelle Angst, 32. The girl was her 9-year-old daughter, St. Petersburg police said. Police took Angst to Ed White Hospital before booking her into the Pinellas County Jail on charges of child abuse, assault on a health care professional and probation violation. She remained there late Wednesday on $13,000 bail. The daughter is in the custody of her uncle. Fast Facts: What to do If you see someone driving drunk or preparing to drive drunk, police say you should call 911 immediately.
[Last modified February 22, 2007, 01:27:47]
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by chris
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04/03/07 10:21 PM
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i am a emerg tech and i know from experiance that drunk drivers usually don't get hurt the innocent do.
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by Christina
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02/22/07 07:53 PM
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People should not go to PRISON for getting drunk unless they injure someone. Gail, please dont vote anymore!!!
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by ashley and lisa
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02/22/07 03:32 PM
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we wish michelle and kayla soto(her daughther)good luck!
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by John
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02/22/07 02:21 PM
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Michelle Angst is an unfit mother who should spend plenty of time in jail.
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by Ean
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02/22/07 01:44 PM
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So . . this is Angst!
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by Gail
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02/22/07 01:13 PM
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this woman has been arrested 4 times in the past 2 years for similar violations. WHY is she not in prison???
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by rescuerick
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02/22/07 01:07 PM
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before they jump to conclusions, she was not served at the macaroni grill. responsible alcohol vendors would not serve a person in such condition. lets find out where she was served! some little pub knows!
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by Tommy
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02/22/07 11:40 AM
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Why was it not mentioned that the restaurant did not serve this woman? ABHI RAGHUNATHAN makes this article sound like they served her multiple times and got her drunk. Makes no sense to report something and not put all the facts in the story.
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by Tommy
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02/22/07 11:37 AM
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I was at the restaurant and saw this all go down. My wife and I noticed her as soon as she walked in and the staff refused to serve her, that is when she became angry. The staff appeared to try and keep her from leaving, that is when the fire chief s
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by Jean
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02/22/07 11:22 AM
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A few months back my husband called the cops from a parking lot, an intoxicate driver was trying to leave the lot hitting every curb and car in its path, only to be told that unless he was directly effected there was nothing they could do.
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by Mark
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02/22/07 11:07 AM
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In reference to the Mr Wallace not being a police officer and thus, "..can't arrest people.", couldn't he (or anyone else) have made a citizen's arrest? Also, why did the Mac Grill continue to serve her when she was obviously drunk and w/a child?
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by Mabel
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02/22/07 10:52 AM
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thank God you were there and had the courage to step in for the sake of both.
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by Dave
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02/22/07 10:32 AM
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One, two, three strikes your out! Solution: Michelle should have her child removed from her care. Michelle should NOT go to jail, but rather be placed in a halfway house and given a daily drug test and Disulfiram/Antibuse to stop drinking.
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by Karen
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02/22/07 10:31 AM
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That is something that still makes me proud to live in this area. People aren't afraid to get involved when something wrong is going down. Major kudos!!!
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by Fred
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02/22/07 10:14 AM
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Its nice to know the Macaroni Grill will serve you till you're falling down drunk. Most places cut you off before then. Good reason to detour way around Tyrone. How many more drunks have they turned out on the streets there?
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by Linda
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02/22/07 09:51 AM
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Kudos to you Chief Wallace and the employees of the Mac Grill for the heads up. For shame for shame Michelle. And what do you think your daughter learned from this little road trip? Although, quite obviously, her and her safety were not your concern.
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by Nee
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02/22/07 09:11 AM
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Thank goodness people noticed and intervened! What a loser...poor little girl...
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by Rick
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02/22/07 08:36 AM
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Excellent work Chief Wallace. Glad to see some people don't shut their conscience off at 5pm as well.
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