Police: Motorist in DUI crash left scene to get hoagie

Ashley Hanlon, 36, faces DUI and other charges in connection with alleged Upper Gwynedd incident

A Lansdale woman is facing DUI and other charges after she allegedly crashed her car in Upper Gwynedd while drunk last month and then left the scene of the accident to get a hoagie from a nearby Wawa, where she and her damaged vehicle were spotted by patrol cops, according to police.

Ashley Hanlon, 36, of the 400 block of Franklin Street, was charged this week with two counts of misdemeanor driving under the influence and summary counts of careless driving, accidents causing damage to property and failure to report an accident to police.

Upper Gwynedd police said in a criminal complaint that around 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 4, officers at the Wawa on the 500 block of DeKalb Pike spotted a black Volkswagen Golf with fresh front-end damage, fluid leaking from the radiator and a large fluid trail entering the parking lot.

One officer followed the trail to the corner of Route 202 and DeKalb Pike, where debris from a black vehicle and fluid indicated that the car had missed its turn and smashed into a curb before leaving and driving to the Wawa.

Another officer saw a woman later identified as Hanlon come out of the Wawa and walk to the Golf, then stopped abruptly when she saw the cop and immediately said “No” when asked if the Volkswagen was hers, then said, “Oh, yes it is,” according to the complaint. She initially claimed the front-end damage was from a month earlier, but it was then pointed out to her that the damage was fresh and the car was leaking fluid.

Hanlon reeked of alcohol and showed other signs of intoxication, and admitted that she’d had three drinks earlier that night, the complaint states.

Hanlon failed field sobriety tests, and then admitted crashing into the curb and then leaving the scene to get a hoagie, according to the complaint.

She was arrested and taken to Towamencin police headquarters for breath testing, which indicated her blood alcohol content about an hour after the incident was .16 percent, court documents show.

A summons was issued for Hanlon to appear in district court on April 25 for a preliminary hearing in the matter.