Boca Raton Woman Charged With Two Car Hit-And-Run Crash While Impaired

Allison Laga (Photo: Palm Beach County Jail)

A Boca Raton woman is accused of leaving the scene after her SUV struck two other vehicles on North Dixie Highway and of driving while impaired, city police said.

Allison Laga, 50, was arrested Sunday, according to a Boca Raton Police Department arrest affidavit filed in court this week. She faces two counts of driving under the influence causing property damage, two counts of leaving the scene of a crash with property damage and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Officers were called about 5:49 p.m. Sunday to a reported hit-and-run in the 2000 block of North Dixie Highway, a busy Boca Raton corridor. A caller said a white SUV struck two vehicles in an inside turning lane and fled east toward North Federal Highway, the report said. The drivers of a gray Tesla and a white Toyota Camry were not injured. Both vehicles had minor but functional damage. Combined property damage was listed at $6,000.

Video from one of the struck vehicles showed a white Toyota SUV rear-end the Tesla. A woman with short blonde hair, wearing a red shirt and khaki shorts, then got out as the SUV reversed and struck the Camry, returned to the vehicle, crossed a median and fled eastbound, according to the affidavit. A witness at the scene described the same sequence of collisions and flight but did not get a clear look at the driver.

While officers continued the investigation, another officer saw a matching white SUV with the same tag and crash damage in the area of the 1300 block of South Federal Highway. The vehicle was weaving, braking aggressively and otherwise driving erratically, the report said. The officer stopped it, and Laga got out without placing the SUV in park, police said. She allegedly asked whether she was going to jail, and said she had been in an accident.

In plain view on the driver’s seat, officers say they found a glass pipe with apparent residue and burnt copper wire. A field test of the pipe indicated a positive result for cocaine, the report said. The items were collected. Because Laga was being treated at the hospital, standardized field sobriety exercises were not performed. Police said a breath or urine test was impractical. A blood sample was requested; she refused after implied-consent warnings were read.

On Thursday, Laga remained lodged in the Palm Beach County Jail on $5,000 combined bail for five separate charges.