A Long Island mother is facing felony charges under Leandra's Law after allegedly driving drunk with her two young children in the car and crashing into the woods. Jesher Rivera-Barreto, 31, was arrested Saturday evening after losing control of her vehicle while intoxicated, according to the Suffolk County Police Department.
Rivera-Barreto was driving a 2006 Toyota 4Runner with her one-year-old and four-year-old children as passengers when the crash occurred around 11:25 p.m. The vehicle left the road and came to rest in the woods. Both the mother and the one-year-old sustained minor injuries and were treated at a hospital. The four-year-old was unharmed. Both children were released to their father at the hospital.
Hours before the crash, Rivera-Barreto had posted photos on social media appearing to show her day-drinking. The posts, timestamped on Saturday afternoon, included a caption that read, "Little joys," accompanied by a coffee cup emoji. Police stated she was intoxicated at the time of the crash approximately nine and a half hours later.
Rivera-Barreto faces charges including aggravated driving while intoxicated with a child passenger less than 15 years old, driving while intoxicated, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. The aggravated driving while intoxicated charge is categorized as a felony under Leandra's Law, a New York state law enacted in 2009. The law mandates that driving while intoxicated with a passenger under 15 years old is an automatic felony.
Leandra's Law was established following a fatal accident in 2009 where an 11-year-old girl died and six other children were injured when the car driven by her friend's mother, who was intoxicated, flipped. Previously, the driver in that incident faced only misdemeanor charges.
If convicted of the felony charge under Leandra's Law, Rivera-Barreto faces a maximum of four years in prison and a $5,000 fine. She would also be required to install an ignition interlock device in her vehicle. The misdemeanor charges of driving while intoxicated and endangering the welfare of a child each carry potential penalties of up to one year in jail and fines up to $1,000.
Authorities held Rivera-Barreto in jail overnight. Her arraignment took place on Monday, though her plea was not immediately available. The Suffolk County Police Department reported the incident.