Jamie Hicks, 49, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.18 -- over twice the legal limit -- when she was picked up by the police, according to the New York Daily News. She was driving her daughter and 10-year-old son from their grandparents' home in Connecticut back to their home on Long Island on Sunday.
New York State Police
Jamie Hicks, 49, was released on $2,000 bond.
When the girl noticed that Hicks was speaking strangely and driving dangerously along Interstate 84, she called the authorities and told them her mother was drunk, according to police.
"This young girl made a very brave decision," said state Police Capt. Robert Nuzzo, the Daily News reported.
Hicks was furious that her daughter had called the police, and emergency services called the girl back on her cell phone and could hear the sound of a raging argument in the car, the New York Post reported.
When police traced the location of the cell phone, they found Hicks pulled over. Two people parked nearby told the police they had seen Hicks and the girl arguing inside the car.
Hicks was charged under a law that makes it a felony to drive while intoxicated with minors in the car. She was released on a $2,000 bond, The Associated Press reported.
The heroic girl is now staying with her grandfather, Stephen Hicks.
"The family is very grateful my granddaughter had the common sense to make that call," he told the Post. "The situation is -- how can I put it -- a terrible lapse in judgment."
