Woman arrested after allegedly rear-ending vehicle causing injuries to all involved

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A woman has been criminally charged with driving under the influence causing injury and careless driving following a recent traffic accident in Futiga.

Mary Tuiteleleapaga made her initial appearance in the District Court on Tuesday and bail has been set at $1,000.

According to the criminal complaint, on Sept. 3, 2022 the defendant who was allegedly intoxicated was involved in a car crash in Futiga.

 “The defendant crashed into another vehicle from behind that was traveling the same direction, causing significant damages to property and injuries to three individuals that were passengers in the other vehicle.”

According to the criminal complaint, upon arrival at the scene, authorities found two vehicles had crashed with bystanders attending to the passengers that were injured.

 “Both vehicles were traveling west bound and all occupants of both vehicles sustained injuries that required medical attention.

“EMS arrived at the scene and tended to the victims injuries while Tuiteleleapaga fell unconscious shortly after she was removed from her truck and [the police] was deemed unable to perform the Standard Field Sobriety Tests.

“After administering medical treatment on the scene, all occupants were later transported to the LBJ hospital for further treatment,” according to Court documents.

It’s alleged that at the hospital Tuiteleleapaga’s vitals were checked and urine samples were taken for testing and the results came back “positive for methamphetamine, and tetrahydrocannabinol” (THC), an active component in marijuana.

According to the Court documents, she is facing DUI causing personal injury, which is a felony while the carless driving charge is a misdemeanor.