Woman Blames GPS for Drunken Crash on Golf Course

A Massachusetts woman who drove her Buick into a sand trap told cops she was following her GPS. (Northbridge Police Department)

A Massachusetts woman who allegedly drove drunk into a golf course sand trap blamed her GPS system for leading her astray.

Patricia Maione, 46, of Uxbridge, Mass., told police at the Whitinsville Golf Club that her GPS had instructed her to turn into a cornfield, and she ended up on the golf course as she tried to get back on the road. No one was injured, but several golfers were on the course at the time and Maione's Buick tore up the grass.

Northbridge police officers came to the scene after their counterparts in neighboring Uxbridge alerted them to an "erratic operator" they were tracking, according to a press release. Uxbridge police had been following Maione after getting a call from her ex-boyfriend, who said she had broken into his home, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette reported.

Maione's speech was slurred, her eyes were bloodshot, and she smelled strongly of alcohol, said Northbridge Police Officer Randy Lloyd, according to the Telegram & Gazette. Police found a large Burger King cup containing an alcoholic beverage, and Maione said she drank half a liter of vodka Monday morning.

Maione faces charges of drunken driving, negligent driving, driving with an open container of alcohol in the car, and driving with a suspended license. The drunk driving charge is Maione's fourth.

A judge revoked her release on personal recognizance in two previous cases - one for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, and the other on drug charges - and held Maione on $10,000 bail.

Pretrial hearings for Maione's three pending cases are scheduled for late July.