By Kurt Bresswein
The Express-Times
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — An Allentown woman suspected of driving drunk struggled with first responders, with one ambulance crew member suffering a broken arm during the fracas, according to authorities.
Pennsylvania State Police say troopers were called to assist emergency medical services about 2:48 a.m. Friday at Race and Green streets in Bath.
Bethlehem Township EMS personnel told troopers they had made contact with a woman who had reportedly been vomiting from a vehicle, police wrote in court records.
Police spoke with the woman, 29-year-old Hadara Abdul Ghani of the 200 block of South Carlisle Street, who denied having gotten sick or that she had been drinking, court records say. But police said they smelled alcohol and determined she was intoxicated.
After being told she was under arrest, Abdul Ghani refused to exit the vehicle, pulling away from troopers before being taken into custody, police said.
Police said she continued to resist — kicking, pulling away and turning into troopers — before being placed on a gurney and into the back of an ambulance.
She then removed her leg restraint and pushed forward with her upper body into one of the ambulance personnel, who suffered a broken left forearm, police said. Additional law enforcement personnel from multiple agencies arrived, and Abdul Ghani was ultimately secured, according to court records.
She was taken by Nazareth Regional EMS to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg in Bethlehem for a medical evaluation, released and arraigned on charges that include aggravated assault, driving under the influence, resisting arrest, simple assault and disorderly conduct. She was released on 10% of $10,000 bail.
The ambulance crew member was treated at St. Luke’s Hospital-Anderson Campus in Bethlehem Township.
A preliminary hearing for Abdul Ghani was tentatively scheduled for Sept. 19 to determine if there is sufficient evidence to send the charges toward trial in Northampton County Court.
Court records were not immediately updated with the name of her attorney, and efforts to reach Abdul Ghani for comment were unsuccessful.
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