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Austintown teacher pleads to DUI charge
AUSTINTOWN
An Austintown teacher had her jail sentence suspended after pleading guilty to a drunken-driving charge.
Amanda Laird, 36, of Baker Street, accepted a plea agreement Monday evening in the county area court in the township, pleading guilty to a misdemeanor count of driving while under the influence of alcohol.
Judge Scott Hunter dismissed accompanying misdemeanor counts of endangering children and traffic violations.
Judge Hunter ordered Laird to serve an 180-day jail sentence, of which all but three days were suspended, and pay a $375 fine.
Her driver's license is suspended. She can attend a state driver-intervention program in lieu of jail time.
Laird has asked the court for occupational driving privileges, court records show.
She declined to speak with The Vindicator after her court appearance.
Laird was caught driving heavily intoxicated while her 2- and 4-year-old children were left at home, according to a township police report.
The report says Laird had a blood-alcohol level of 0.23, nearly three times the legal intoxication limit of 0.08, when arrested by officers just after 11 p.m. March 27.
She has remained on paid administrative leave from the Austintown School District since her charges were filed. District spokeswoman Brittany Bueno said the board could revisit Laird’s employment at its next meeting.
Laird joined Austintown schools in 2013 and is an intervention specialist at the middle school, working with sixth- through eighth-graders with extra behavioral health or disability needs.
She currently makes $39,367 a year.