Woman killed after plunging into icy Pittsburgh river was driving drunk, police say

A woman was drunk when she drove off a snow embankment on Interstate 376 and plunged into the icy Monongahela River in January, Pennsylvania State Police said. 

An autopsy report showed that Jacinta Stevens had a blood alcohol content above Pennsylvania's legal limit of .08% at the time of the crash, Trooper Rocco Gagliardi told the media at a press conference on Tuesday.

Gagliardi laid out a timeline of the crash, saying cameras helped investigators track Stevens' silver Ford Explorer to Lorenz Cafe in Pittsburgh's Elliot neighborhood, where she stayed for about three hours before leaving around 4:30 p.m. 

As she was pulling out of the parking lot, Gagliardi said Stevens backed into a parked car and drove away. She continued towards Chartiers Avenue and Stueben Street, where Gagliardi said she hit a second parked car and kept going.  

Gagliardi said investigators had to determine whether Stevens was hit by any other vehicles, causing her to go up and over a snow embankment and into the river near UPMC Mercy. But no vehicles sustained damage, and one of the witnesses told police that Stevens passed him in the left lane at an "excessive speed" before losing control, Gagliardi said. 

After the crash, a large river rescue ensued in frigid temperatures. Divers pulled out Stevens, but she died at the hospital. The vehicle, which was significantly damaged, was later recovered for a forensic test, Gagliardi said.  

He called it a tragic and complex case, but between police recovering the vehicle and getting the autopsy report, he said the investigation is considered complete.