A Hot Springs woman was arrested on a felony count of driving while intoxicated, her fourth offense, after allegedly driving her car into Lake Hamilton early Tuesday morning.
Levonna Leigh Hennig, 36, who lists a Pittman Road address, was taken into custody around 1:30 a.m. in the 1300 block of Airport Road and charged with DWI 4, punishable by up to six years in prison, and misdemeanor counts of refusal to submit to testing and driving on a license revoked due to a previous DWI conviction.
Hennig was being held on a $3,000 bond and was set to appear Wednesday in Garland County District Court.
According to the probable cause affidavit, shortly before 1 a.m. Tuesday, Hot Springs police Officer Aaron Combs responded to the 1300 block of Airport Road regarding a wreck, and he and other officers were told that a white 2015 Lincoln MKZ had driven off the road prior to the metal barriers into Lake Hamilton.
Officers noted tire tracks leading into the lake and then spotted a woman, later identified as Hennig, swimming to shore. The officers helped her out of the water and noted she was unsteady on her feet, had an odor of intoxicants on her breath and glassy eyes.
Officers spoke to a witness, 26, who stated he had seen Hennig "driving erratically" in the parking lot of Chesswood Plaza and then exit the parking lot "very quickly," driving into the pylons placed out in the roadway. Then she drove off the road into the grass where "she accelerated and drove into Lake Hamilton," he said.
The affidavit notes the distance from the metal barrier to the edge of the water was about 500 feet and the distance from the shore to where the vehicle landed in the lake was about 70 feet.
Hennig was reportedly checked by LifeNet and refused medical attention. Officers spoke to Hennig about 30 minutes after being out of the water and in the ambulance and noted she was still unsteady on her feet, had an odor of intoxicants and glassy eyes. Officers asked if she would submit to field sobriety tests, but she refused so she was arrested for DWI.
Once at the Garland County Detention Center, Hennig reportedly refused to answer any questions, take any tests or "cooperate in any way."
According to court records, Hennig was convicted of DWI, first offense, in 2016; DWI, second offense, in 2017; DWI third offense on July 15, 2020, where she was fined $2,550 and sentenced to one year of probation and 90 days in jail.
She had pleaded guilty on Aug. 4, 2022, to driving while her license was revoked due to DWI and was sentenced to 10 days in jail.
Print Headline: HS woman arrested for felony DWI after allegedly driving car into lake
This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of The Sentinel-Record. Please read our Terms of Use or contact us.
Material from the Associated Press is Copyright © 2022, Associated Press and may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use. The AP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing. All rights reserved.