Candice Vanwaardenburg, 52, is charged in La Porte Superior Court 4 with operating while intoxicated and leaving the scene of an accident.
Police said the San Pierre woman was reported as a reckless driver Monday evening before driving off the road and pulling into the parking lot of Franciscan Health just outside Michigan City.
Surveillance video footage shows her colliding with a Subaru Outback outside the hospital and erratically pulling her pick-up truck with a freshly damaged front bumper into a wide open parking spot, according to police.
Police said Vanwaardenburg stepped out of the vehicle wearing traditional blue scrubs and identification as a registered nurse. She was on her way to begin her 12 hour shift but was so unsteady on her feet she was wheeled into the hospital.
She then was admitted as a patient.
According to police, an officer with approval from her doctor went inside her room to speak to her about the collision in the parking lot. The doctor informed the officer she may have had a stroke but they were still in the process of making a diagnosis.
The officer began his investigation by asking about her symptoms.
In a slurred speech, the woman said her husband expressed concern that she didn’t seem right in the mind when she left and she had to begin squinting her eyes while passing through Westville, according to police.
The officer’s suspicions were raised, though, when he moved closer and smelled an odor of alcohol on her breath. In response, Vanwaardenburg claimed it had been about 18 hours since her last drink, police said.
Soon, a blood sample taken from her revealed a 0.416 blood alcohol level or slightly five times more than the .08 percent legal limit for operating a vehicle.
She was handcuffed and taken to the La Porte County Jail then released the next day after posting $900 cash bond to await the outcome of her two misdemeanor counts.
