'SUV into house' among weekend drunk driving incidents in Austin

The Austin Fire Department said people were asleep in a 2-story home on Wilson Heights Drive when an SUV came crashing through the living room around 4:45 Monday morning.
               
The Austin Police Department confirms the driver was arrested for DWI.
               
Thankfully no one was hurt.  But crews had to work to shore up the house after the driver left a gaping hole in it.

"Because the car rolled into the front living room and basically took out structural members of the house so we're trying to make sure there's not any further collapse," said Lt. Matt Mcelearney with the Austin Fire Department.

According to police paperwork there were plenty of other drunk driving incidents from the weekend.

One example, police said was of 39-year-old Zachary Davis when he hit a cyclist on the 900 block of South 1st Street. 

While the cyclist lay bleeding and unresponsive on the curb, police said Davis didn't bother stopping.

An officer caught up with him at his house and saw damage to the front of his pickup.

Police said Davis agreed that he shouldn't have been driving but told the officer he tried to call a cab and due to the Austin City Limits Music Festival it was going to be a 2-hour wait.

Davis is charged with "failure to stop and render aid" and "intoxication assault."

Detective Richard Mabe with APD's DWI Enforcement Unit says drivers need to think about how they're going to get home beforehand.

"The time to find that ride home is not 2:00 in the morning after the bars close.  Plan ahead.  Try to make sure you have a way to get to wherever you're going to be at, get home safely," Mabe said.

Also, over the weekend, there were at least 2 incidents of "driving while intoxicated with a child passenger," a state jail felony. 

Police say Rebecca Snowden-Saenz was pulled over for speeding on the 7900 block of South Congress.  She told the officer she was chasing someone who hit her vehicle but another person had called 911 claiming she actually hit their vehicle and took off.  Police said Saenz was swaying, had slurred speech and bloodshot eyes.

"You know we as adults, we have choices.  A lot of times those children they have no choices.  They are put there by their parents," Mabe said.

If you do need a ride home during an event like ACL, rideshare is an option.

Non-profit Ride Austin is ACL's rideshare partner.  CEO Andy Tryba says they've even been giving some free rides with their partner Honda.

"Me personally as well as all of my friends there's really no reason not to choose that.  I mean make good decisions.  Why would you even go and drive buzzed when you can have a car that 's 5 minutes away and it's going to cost you what $10 to get home?  Come on guys, make the right call," Tryba said.

Austin Police said this wasn't a "No Refusal" weekend.  That will pick up again toward the end of November and there will be No Refusal dates through the Christmas Holidays as well.