Nebraska State Patrol: Wrong-way driver on I-80 in Lincoln causes 2 crashes, arrested for DUI

LINCOLN, Neb. (WOWT) - A woman was arrested overnight after allegedly driving drunk the wrong way down the interstate, causing two crashes and spitting on a Nebraska state trooper.

The Nebraska State Patrol says troopers were first notified about a hit-and-run crash overnight, just before 12 a.m. Saturday.

Troopers were told that an apparent wrong-way driver was going eastbound in the westbound lanes on I-80 near mile marker 391.

The wrong-way driver allegedly caused the collision between a Ford Eco Sport and a semi-truck. Just minutes later, another crash was found by a trooper involving two more vehicles near mile marker 397.

One of the vehicles in the second crash, a Kia Spectra, was allegedly identified by the trooper as the vehicle that caused the first crash. The trooper also allegedly saw that the driver of the Kia was impaired.

The driver of the Kia, identified as 34-year-old Heather Teschendorf of Milford, was placed into custody while the crashes were investigated.

Teschendorf and the driver of the Ford were both sent to the Bryan Health Center West Campus with minor injuries. The Nebraska State Patrol says while at the hospital, Teschendorf spit on a trooper’s face and was “physically combative.”

After being cleared medically, Teschendorf was lodged in Lancaster County Jail for driving under the influence, willful reckless driving, leaving the scene of a crash, assault on a public safety officer with bodily fluid failure to submit to a pretest and resisting arrest.

The crashes were investigated with assistance from Seward and Lancaster County Sheriff’s deputies.