Norwalk man clips police cruiser; steps out of car with with marijuana cigarette

NORWALK -- While sporting a T-shirt that said "High As (expletive)" a Norwalk man allegedly clipped an oncoming police cruiser in East Norwalk on Thursday afternoon and got slapped with a host of DUI, marijuana, and motor vehicle charges.

According to police, a Norwalk officer observed an oncoming Chevy Lumina driven by 19-year-old Luis Santos take a wide left turn onto Van Zant Street narrowly avoiding a head-on collision with the cruiser. While the officer was able to avoid a full collision with the car, the vehicles made "mirror-to-mirror" contact and the driver continued on his way.

The officer spun his car around, and following the Chevy with lights and sirens activated, the driver failed to stop until reaching the Osborne Avenue intersection at which time police say he stopped the vehicle in the middle of the road, blocking traffic.

Police report that there was a "heavy odor" of marijuana emanating from Santos' vehicle, and when Santos stepped out of his vehicle he was holding a lit marijuana cigarette in his hand.

Police say that Santos, who did not respond when asked to produce license and registration, remained silent throughout the entire incident. He failed a field sobriety test on scene.

Santos, 19, of 9 Vollmer Ave., was charged with: operating a motor vehicle while under the influence; operating without a driver's license, evading responsibility, possession of less than four ounces of marijuana, and failure to use a turn signal.

He was held on $2,000 bond and given a court date of March 23.