Woman gets prison time for DUI crash that injured a Florida Keys deputy

Crime admin October 14, 2026 0 Comments

Woman gets prison time for DUI crash that injured a Florida Keys deputy

A Monroe County judge sentenced a Minnesota woman on Tuesday to four years in state prison after she pleaded guilty to felony driving under the influence in connection to a car crash that permanently injured a sheriff’s office deputy two years ago.

Alexandra Marlene Baraga, 29, was driving her Toyota Prius at mile marker 87 around 10:40 p.m. April 9, 2024, when she crashed into the back of a Keys sheriff’s office patrol car, according to her arrest report. Deputy Julian Garcia was outside of his car during a traffic stop, and the impact pushed his cruiser into the car he pulled over, trapping him between the two vehicles, the Florida Highway Patrol said in a report.

Garcia was flown to Jackson South Medical Center, and suffered permanent and “catastrophic” injuries, the Monroe County State Attorney’s Office said. His colleagues responding to the crash had to apply tourniquets to “control severe bleeding,” prosecutors said.

Sheriff’s spokesperson Adam Linhardt said Garcia returned to duty after a long period of physical rehabilitation, but has since retired.

The man in the Ford Fusion that was pulled over was treated for minor injuries at Mariners Hospital in Tavernier, according to the FHP’s report.

Troopers detained Baraga and also took her to Mariners, where nurses drew her blood around 2 a.m. Results showed her blood alcohol level was .286, more than three times over the legal limit for driving, according to the State Attorney’s Office.

“This was entirely preventable. Baraga made the decision to drive drunk, and a deputy who was simply doing his job will live with the consequences for the rest of his life,” Chief Assistant State Attorney Joseph Mansfield said in a statement.

As part of a negotiated plea agreement, she pleaded guilty to DUI with serious bodily injury and felony reckless driving causing serious bodily injury. Along with the prison sentence, she received five years’ probation, was ordered to complete 50 hours of community service, attend DUI school, submit to random drug and alcohol testing and her driver’s license was suspended for three years.

Baraga’s attorney did not immediately respond to the Miami Herald’s request for comment. On Wednesday, Baraga was being held at Monroe County’s main jail on Stock Island. Mansfield noted in his statement that Baraga did not say anything to Garcia during the sentencing.

“What is particularly troubling is that she stood before the court today and said nothing to the deputy whose life she permanently changed. Not one word to the man who will carry the scars of her actions for the rest of his life,” Mansfield said. “Her four years in prison will eventually end. Deputy Garcia’s injuries will not. No plea agreement and no prison sentence can undo the damage caused by her reckless and selfish decision.”