DUI Charges Filed Against Five Motorists by Moon Township Police

Shannon Marie Rudy, 30, of Moon Township has been charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance—and endangering the welfare of children—after an incident on April 18.

Moon Township police received a report of a woman driver driving erratically with two children in the backseat. Police found Rudy at her home.

According to a police report, officers found her with droopy eyes, pin-point pupils and appearing lethargic with slurred speech. Rudy admitted to taking a prescribed medication for anxiety.

Police asked her to come with them to the station for testing by a drug recognition specialist. When she refused the test, she was placed under arrest. Toxicology testing done by Sewickley Valley Hospital showed Rudy testing positive for oxycodone free, a Schedule II controlled substance.

She faces a preliminary hearing at 9:30 a.m. June 4 before District Judge Mary P. Murray.

Moon police also dealt with a number of other driving under the influence cases in the second half of April:

• Michael Arco Zapsic, 36, of Aliquippa faces charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and one count of careless driving filed by Moon police. At about 12:16 a.m. April 18, police responded to a call for a disabled vehicle on Business 376 in the area of the 911th Airlift Wing base. Zapsic, who was the driver, told police he had run over a rumble strip and had a flat tire. Police observed that his eyes were bloodshot and glassy and he had an odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from him, according to a police report. Zapsic failed field sobriety tests and a preliminary breath test was positive for alcohol. A blood alcohol content test was done at Sewickley Valley Hospital. He faces a preliminary hearing at 9:30 a.m. June 4 before District Judge Mary P. Murray.

• Madalen Irene Sexton, 26, of Leetsdale is charged with two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol and one count of obedience to traffic-control devices. About 1:25 a.m. April 12, a Moon officer monitoring the traffic lights at Beaver Grade Road and University Boulevard observed a car driven by Sexton make a right turn where a "No Turn on Red" sign was posted. After initiating a traffic stop, the officer noted that Sexton's eyes were red and glassy, and that there was a smell of an alcoholic beverage about the interior of the car, according to a police report. Sexton failed a field sobriety test and a preliminary breath test was positive for alcohol. She submitted to a blood alcohol contest test at Sewickley Valley Hospital. The Allegheny County Crime Lab measured her blood alcohol content at .134 percent—and the legal limit is .08 percent. A preliminary hearing will be held at 9:30 a.m. June 4 in district court.

• Anthony A. Battista, 29, of Moon Township is charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after an incident on April 15 at about 3:37 a.m. According to a police report, officers responded to a report of an unresponsive man in a car at the America's Best Value Inn. One officer attempted to rouse Battista, who was sitting in the locked car with the headlights on and engine running. It took several minutes to get the car unlocked and once it was, officers report an overwhelming odor of an alcoholic beverage inside. Police said as he began to come around, Battista appeared to be highly intoxicated with glassy eyes and slurred speech. He declined a preliminary breath test and did not consent to a blood alcohol content test. A preliminary hearing is scheduled at 11 a.m. June 4 before District Judge Mary P. Murray.

• Michael Martin Fedorowich, 38, of Moon Township is charged with two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol filed by Moon police. An officer observed a slow-moving vehicle using four-way flashers traveling east on University Boulevard about 6:14 a.m April 15. Both of the passenger-side tires were flat and being shredded by the rims. Fedorowich told police he had run over glass on Route 65. According to a police report, Fedorowich's speech was slurred and an odor of alcohol was present. He failed field sobriety tests and a preliminary breath test was positive for alcohol. A blood alcohol content test was done at Sewickley Valley Hospital. A preliminary hearing will be held at 9:30 a.m. June 4 in district court.

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