An Illinois woman was sentenced to one year in prison Tuesday in a neglect case where East Chicago cops pulled her over for slow driving with no headlights and found Xanax and marijuana in the minivan.
Mariah White, now 23, of Bridgeview, Illinois, pleaded guilty April 8 to two counts of Level 6 felony neglect, court records show.
Two small children, aged 5 and 3, were without car seats or in seat belts, court documents allege. Their mother later picked them up from the police station.
Whiting police radioed East Chicago around 9 p.m. April 26, 2021 that a minivan was headed south extremely slowly on Indianapolis Boulevard.
White drove through three intersections after East Chicago officers tried to pull her over. Other cars had to “stop erratically” to avoid hitting her, the affidavit states.
White turned west on 149th Street before stopping. Two police officers got out and approached on both sides. When she tried to take off again, an officer reached inside and put the minivan in park, charges state.
White appeared “confused” with police finding marijuana on the console and a box labeled “Xanax” containing pills in the van, documents allege.
“Yeah, I smoked a little weed, and took two Xanax, but that was like four hours ago,” she told police, according to the probable cause affidavit.
White said she had a prescription for the pills, which police didn’t find, they wrote.
Deputy Prosecutor Cole Galloway was assigned. Defense lawyer Kirk Marrie represented White.