Prosecutors: Drugs, paraphernalia found in vehicle driven by woman who caused crash involving deputy

WAUKESHA COUNTY -- Charges were filed Monday, Jan. 27 against a Waukesha woman facing two counts of intoxicated use of a vehicle causing great bodily harm, repeater after prosecutors said she caused a chain-reaction crash that injured a Waukesha County sheriff's deputy on Jan. 17.

Jamie Robinson

The crash happened shortly before 10 a.m. on I-94 westbound near S. Elm Grove Road. In the moments after the crash, the criminal complaint said the deputy was screaming that she was hurt, and could not feel her legs.

The crash involved three vehicles -- including the squad, a Chevy Tahoe, along with a red Prius, and a gray Volkswagen SUV. Prosecutors said Jamie Robinson was driving the VW SUV.

The deputy indicated she was in the median break point when she was struck by other vehicles -- suffering severe pain down her legs, back, and neck area. At the hospital, she was diagnosed with a concussion, a laceration to her skull, a possible stress fracture to her foot, a lacerated bowel, a torn calf muscle, and damaged vertebrae.

Crash into Waukesha County squad

The driver of the red Prius, which prosecutors said was struck by Robinson's VW SUV, and then pushed into the deputy's squad, suffered multiple broken bones, internal bleeding, and lacerations -- injuries that required surgery, according to the complaint. When first responders arrived, a physician was tending to this driver -- and officials took over her care and the care of the deputy.

Investigators spoke with the front seat passenger of the VW SUV prosecutors said Robinson was driving. He was not hurt and said he didn't see how the crash happened.

Robinson said she was headed westbound on I-94 near Highway 100 when she "rubbed her eye," and then crashed into a vehicle, but she didn't know which one, the complaint said. Prosecutors said she offered quick, short responses to questions, and sometimes said, "I don't know" very quickly. Investigators noted her pupils were dilated and she was "very hyperactive," as Robinson indicated she didn't take medication or use any drugs.

Crash into Waukesha County squad

As Robinson was being transported to the sheriff's substation for field sobriety testing, investigators learned DOT camera video showed Robinson caused the crash -- when the VW struck the rear of the Prius, which then struck the squad.

A search of the vehicle prosecutors said Robinson was driving revealed drug paraphernalia, including a digital scale, and glass pipe, along with marijuana, a Narcan container, and a Walgreens bottle for suboxone with Robinson's name on it. The complaint said she indicated she knew nothing about the items.

Robinson was arrested for OWI, and during transport to Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital, indicated she had gabapentin pills on her person, the complaint said. Investigators recovered 35 pills in a bag, and while Robinson said she had a prescription for the medication, she did not provide documentation of it, according to prosecutors. At the hospital, the complaint said she became very lethargic and was unable to stay awake. She refused a blood draw, so a search warrant was obtained for one, the complaint said.

Robinson was in court for her initial appearance Monday. Cash bond was set at $30,000, and a preliminary hearing was scheduled for Feb. 6.