Animals | Weird | Trending

Don't Drink And Ride, Woman Arrested After Going For A Drunken Gallop

Polk County Sheriff's Office

A woman in Flordia was charged for DUI and animal neglect after she was caught riding a horse, while drunk, down a bustling highway.

Donna Byrne, 53, was arrested when a witness spotted the unusual occurrence and noticed she appeared dazed and confused. On Nov. 2, Sheriff Grady Judd said Byrne had rode her horse, Bo Duke, all the way from Polk City to Lakeland before she was caught, USA Today reports.

"We wanted to interview the horse, and he said he didn't have anything to say about it," Judd joked.

When Byrne was issued a sobriety test, officers said she gave breath samples registering blood-alcohol levels of .157 and .161 - more than doubling Florida's legal limit of .08.

While an outrageous situation, sadly this isn't the first time Byrne has had a brush with the law.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, her extensive criminal record includes five felony and ten misdemeanor charges, consisting of cruelty to animals, drug possession, probation violation, and criminal traffic.

Florida's state law broadly defines a vehicle as essentially anything you can ride on a highway.

"Ms. Byrne was obviously not in any condition to be on the road. She not only put herself and the horse in danger, but also anyone who was driving on the road, which is typically very busy," Judd said.

While Bo Duke was taken by deputies to the Polk County Sheriff's Animal Control livestock facility following the incident, it's expected the duo will eventually be united.

What would you do if you saw someone riding a horse down the highway?

Related Articles