Ex-commish of state addiction agency busted for DUI after crashing into parked cars, urinating on self: DA
The ex-head of the state’s Office of Addiction Services and Supports was busted in Queens for drunken driving last week — and allegedly so plastered that she slammed into parked cars and urinated on herself.
Arlene González-Sánchez, 68, had a blood-alcohol content of .20 — or two and a half times the legal limit of .08 — and at one point she uttered to the cop who pulled her over, “Commissioner,” the Queens District Attorney’s Office said Monday.
The former commissioner — who left her top job in 2021 after 10 years — was arraigned Saturday for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, leaving the scene of an accident and other charges after her Friday night arrest, which happened in the quiet neighborhood of Auburndale, the DA’s office said.
In the criminal complaint, NYPD Officer Christopher Machalek wrote that he heard a loud crash near the intersection of 50th Avenue and Weeks Lane about 10:15 p.m. — just before he noticed several parked cars with badly damaged bumpers.
Arlene González-Sánchez, a former state commissioner involving addiction services, was arrested for hitting several parked cars while allegedly drunk over the weekend in Queens. X/Arlene Sanchez
Machalek then saw González-Sánchez sitting in the driver’s seat of her 2001 Toyota 4Runner, which was also damaged on both corner panels, the complaint said.
He watched as she tried to drive away but then ran up a curb and landed on the sidewalk instead, the court document said.
Machalek approached González-Sánchez’s car and found her reeking of alcohol, with watery eyes and slurred speech, the complaint said.
He put her car in park, pulled the keys out and got her out of the SUV — and that’s when she allegedly urinated on herself.
She also said the word, “Commissioner” to him, he said, according to the complaint.
Machalek brought her back to the 112th Precinct, where she allegedly blew .20 on the BAC test.
González-Sánchez blew a .20 in a breathalyzer test, which is more than double the legal limit, the complaint said. X/Arlene Sanchez
González-Sánchez — who did not respond to a Post request for comment Monday — is a licensed social worker who led the state’s Office of Addiction Services and Supports for nearly a decade.
Appointed Jan. 3, 2011, by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, she had more than three decades’ worth of experience in the behavioral health services administration, health policy development and medical research fields, according to her online bio.
She was dismissed from the spot in September 2021, when Gov. Kathy Hochul launched a purge of her predecessor’s many appointees.
González-Sánchez left her spot with the state’s Office of Addiction Services and Supports in 2021 after a decade. AP
Gonzalez-Sanchez has three degrees: A bachelor’s in biology and a master’s in cell biology, both from Fordham University, and a master’s in administration and community organization from the Hunger College School of Social Work.
She also served on several state and national boards, including as the first vice president of the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors.
Her arrest was greeted with shock Monday by those who remembered her as a pleasant, well-regarded administrator.
“I’m surprised — she’s a good lady,” said Rob Kent, who for nine years served as Gonzalez-Sanchez’s general counsel in the addiction office, to The Post. “She’s a real stand-up person. It’s sad to hear this happened.”
A Cuomo insider added, “It’s a little bit of a surprise.”
Authorities released the former state commissioner after her Saturday court date, the district attorney said.
She will appear in court again Aug. 5.