Trey Mewes, Austin Daily Herald, Minn. –
A 40-year-old Austin woman who allegedly picked up her kindergarten-age child while drunk was sentenced to probation Friday in Mower County court.
Gina Marie Mason’s six-month jail sentence was stayed for one year.
Police arrested Mason on Jan. 11 after they received an anonymous tip that she was on her way to pick up her son from Woodson Kindergarten Center while intoxicated. According to Police Chief Brian Krueger, officers found Mason walking out of Woodson Elementary School and toward a green Ford Escort with her son around 2:30 p.m.
An officer spoke with Mason, and she denied being intoxicated. The officer noticed she had bloodshot, glassy eyes and smelled of alcohol. Mason failed field sobriety tests, and her preliminary breath test indicated her blood alcohol content was more than the legal limit, Krueger said.
Police arrested Mason before she drove with her son in the car.