A Broward Sheriff’s deputy has been arrested months after he allegedly was driving under the influence, speeding over 30 mph above the speed limit seconds before crashing his unmarked unit into another car.
Deputy Carlos Aurelio Hernandez, 36, was arrested Tuesday on charges stemming from the early-morning crash on May 15, the Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday. He faces half a dozen charges, including DUI with serious bodily injury to another, two counts of DUI with damage to property or person, reckless driving causing serious bodily injury and two counts of reckless driving causing damage to person or property.
Hernandez was off duty driving his unmarked unit west in the 13600 block of Pines Boulevard in Pembroke Pines about 5:45 a.m. that Sunday morning in May and crashed into the rear of a 2018 Kia Sportage, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Investigators found Hernandez reached 77 mph about five seconds before hitting the Kia and was driving at 71 mph when his unit rear-ended the car. The road’s speed limit is 45 mph.
The impact caused the Kia to veer off the road, hit a tree and flip onto the roof. The male driver was taken to Memorial Regional Hospital to be treated for his injuries, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The man’s name is withheld under Marsy’s Law, a voter-approved constitutional amendment that allows crime victims to withhold their identities from the public.
Hernandez’s breath smelled of alcohol several hours after the crash, and his speech was slurred in dispatch recordings, detectives found.
Hernandez was asked on the dispatch radio if he was hurt. He said: “Um. The car turned in front of me and um seems to be like flipped over. So. Yeah,” according to an arrest report.
Hernandez stayed at the crash scene after telling detectives he wasn’t injured, the arrest report says. But three hours later, when he learned there was a DUI investigation, he asked to be taken to Memorial Regional Hospital.
Pembroke Pines Fire Rescue took Hernandez to the hospital where he was evaluated. The results of that evaluation are redacted from the report.
After the crash, Hernandez was suspended with pay, the Sheriff’s Office said. He was suspended without pay after his arrest. He was hired in September 2017, and his current salary is $71,186.42.
Hernandez was being held in the Broward Main Jail pending his release on bond.
