Woman pulled from wreck said she was alone in car, deputies say. Her passenger burned to death.

DEERFIELD BEACH — Firefighters found Andrew Alvarado’s body in the charred wreckage of a car that police say hit a utility pole at more than twice the posted speed limit. Alvarado did not die in the crash, but in the fire that sparked after the impact, according to the medical examiner.

According to investigators, the woman behind the wheel — Stephanie Binger of Deerfield Beach — was helped out of the wrecked vehicle by good Samaritans. When they asked her if anyone else was inside the car, she said no, authorities said.

Binger, 34, is now facing a vehicular homicide and a DUI manslaughter charge as a result of Alvarado’s death.

Her blood-alcohol level tested at 0.15, nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08, when she was checked out at Broward Health North medical center after the crash, the report stated. She told doctors there that she had had “multiple Tito’s,” a vodka drink.

The crash happened just before 6 a.m. on Nov. 10, 2019, as Binger was driving north in the 4200 block of Northeast Third Avenue in Deerfield Beach. The 2013 Nissan Altima crossed into the southbound lanes, jumped the curb, drove along the sidewalk, then struck a concrete utility pole, knocking out power to the surrounding neighborhood, the arrest report stated. The car caught fire after it hit the pole.

Investigators say Binger was driving at 62 mph in a 30-mph zone, and there was no evidence of skid marks to indicate any attempt to swerve or brake. Records indicate Binger had unspecified crash-related injuries that required surgery.

Alvarado, 33, was a resident of Pompano Beach.

Binger was arrested Tuesday on charges of DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide and reckless driving. She was in the Broward County Jail Thursday on bonds totaling $235,000.

Binger’s attorney, Ken Padowitz, said she pleaded not guilty at a court hearing on Wednesday.

“My client is a single mom with two children,” Padowitz said. “She’s a very responsible person.”

Alvarado’s relatives could not be reached for comment.

JOE CAVARETTA/SOUTH FLORIDA SUN SENTINEL Broward Sheriff’s deputies at the scene of a crash at Northeast 42nd Street and Third Avenue in Deerfield Beach on Nov. 10, 2019. Andrew Alvarado, 33, a passenger in the car, died in the fiery wreckage.

BROWARD SHERIFF’S OFFICE Stephanie Binger, 34, of Deerfield Beach, is facing charges that include DUI manslaughter for a fiery crash that killed passenger Andrew Alvarado, 33, of Pompano Beach, in November 2019.