A top enlisted personnel for the United States Marine Corps — who allegedly admitted to “consuming alcohol prior to driving” — was arrested after she seriously injured two teenagers in Virginia.
Sgt. Maj. Beth Ellen Abbott, 39, was charged with one count of driving under the influence, according to Military.com.
The Stafford County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to the outlet that Abbott was the driver who allegedly struck the pedestrians on May 31.
Deputies responded to calls of two 14-year-olds who were struck by a car at around 9 p.m. in Aquia Harbour near Marine Corps Base Quantico — about 50 miles south of Washington, DC.
“[Abbott] had glassy, bloodshot eyes, the odor of an alcoholic beverage on her breath, and admitted to consuming alcohol prior to driving,” police said in a press release.
The two 14-year-old victims were airlifted to a nearby hospital in serious condition, but are expected to make a full recovery.
Abbott, who was assigned as a sergeant major to the Marine Corps Basic School in Quantico, Virginia, — a training school for new Marine officers — has been relieved of her title following the crash, the outlet reported.
Her online biography, which has since been removed, cited her as the battalion sergeant major of the Combat Instructor Battalion.
The Marine Corps is “aware of the charges against Sgt. Maj. Abbott, who was relieved of her duties earlier this evening,” Maj. Danielle Phillips, a Training and Education Command spokeswoman, told the outlet.
The branch said they were “coordinating with local authorities for their ongoing investigation during this difficult time.”
The Michigan native enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2003, serving on multiple combat deployments to Iraq and one to Afghanistan.
During her tenured years of service, Abbott also received a Purple Heart and two Combat Action Ribbons.
After her first deployment to Iraq in 2006, she returned to the States to serve as a Drill Instructor at Marine Corps Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina, before deploying to Afghanistan in 2010.