Toms River Woman Charged With DUI After 4-Vehicle Crash

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A Toms River woman has been charged with driving under the influence following a four-vehicle crash on Monday that injured one person, police said.

Heather Scoville, 36, was cited with driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, reckless driving, and failure to maintain a lane, said Jillian Messina, media relations specialist for the Toms River Police Department.

Scoville was headed east on Whitesville Road about 8 a.m. Monday when she failed to negotiate a curve and went into the oncoming traffic, Messina said. There, she sideswiped an oncoming vehicle.

After the first impact, Scoville's vehicle kept going east in the westbound lane, where she hit a marked New Jersey State Police SUV, causing it to spin, Messina said.

The spinning trooper's SUV hit an oncoming Toms River school bus, a street sign and a utility pole; the utility pole was severely damaged and had to be replaced, she said.

The bus did not have students on board at the time, she said.

All drivers were wearing their seatbelts at the time of the crash; one person was taken to the hospital for minor injuries, Messina said.

The accident is under investigation by Toms River Traffic Safety Officer Robert Westfall and Traffic Safety Officer Mark Nater.

Click here to get Patch email notifications, or download our app to have breaking news alerts sent right to your phone. Have a news tip? Email karen.wall@patch.com Follow Toms River Patch on Facebook.