RIGA, Latvia - Police in eastern Latvia were trying to determine Wednesday what charges to bring against a drunken horse-and-buggy driver who caused a drunken motorist to crash into a ditch, flipping his car.
The accident happened just before midnight Monday near Kraslava, 140 miles east of the Latvian capital, Riga. The driver of the horse-and-buggy made an illegal turn onto a main road when he should have yielded to an oncoming car, said Kraslava police spokeswoman Ingrida Nevedomska.
To avoid crashing into the horse-and-buggy, the driver of the car, a Volkswagen Golf, veered into a roadside ditch, flipping his car, Nevedomska said. The driver was not seriously hurt.
Police, who did not release the names of the drivers, administered breathalyzer tests and determined they were both legally drunk, Kraslava traffic police chief Uldis Ornicans said.
The driver of the car was fined $830 and had his license revoked.
But police were unsure what to do about the horse-and-buggy driver — only motor vehicles and bicycles are covered under the country's drunk driving laws.
"How do you ticket a guy driving a horse-and-buggy?" Nemedomska said.
Ornicans said the man at the reins would probably be charged with having caused an accident but declined to specify what penalties he might face.
As for the horse, Nevedomska said, it seemed sober. -----------------------
