A Litchfield man was arrested by officers from the California Highway Patrol for driving under the influence June 28th, after the truck and trailer he was driving struck a bridge on Cappezoli Lane, shearing off the trailer’s wheels and sparking a brush fire along the roadway.
At around 7:30p.m., CHP’s Susanville Dispatch Center notified officers that a traffic collision had started a fire in Standish. The CHP units arrived to find that the driver of the truck and trailer, identified as 34-year old Litchfield resident Colton Dean Shields, had struck the bridge and, without wheels, the trailer’s axles were grinding on the pavement, showering the shoulder with sparks and hot metal.
The resulting sparks and metal started a brush fire.
“While investigating the collision,” explains CHP Public Information Officer Bruce Thuelchassaigne, “CHP officers on scene detected the objective signs and symptoms of impairment from the driver.”
According to Thuelchassaigne, Shields failed field sobriety tests and was arrested under the suspicion of driving while under the influence of alcohol. He was booked at the Lassen County Jail.
“The California Highway Patrol would like to remind you to never drink and drive! Susanville CHP would like to extend special thanks to Lassen County Sheriff and local fire agencies that responded and kept the brush fire from spreading.”
