Lawmaker sues Sacramento police over DUI

Cervantes, who was cleared by a blood test, accuses the officers of retaliation.

- By Laura J. NELSON AND NATHAN SOLIS

SARAHI APAEZ ASSEMBLYMEMBER Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) says police officers tarnished her reputation when she was cited on DUI suspicion after a collision.

A Riverside County lawmaker accused of driving drunk after a car crash, but cleared by a blood test, took the first step Monday toward suing the Sacramento Police Department, saying officers had tarnished her reputation.

After Sen. Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) was broadsided by an SUV near the Capitol in May, Sacramento police interviewed the 37-year-old lawmaker for hours at a Kaiser Permanente hospital before citing her on suspicion of driving under the influence. Prosecutors declined to file charges after the toxicology results of a blood test revealed no “measurable amount of alcohol or drugs.”