CCT TV CAPTURES NIGHTMARE IN SMITH BAY: DUI OPERATOR RUNS OVER PASSENGER TWICE

By JOHN McCARTHY / St. Croix Sun News Reporter

ST. THOMAS — A late-night patrol by the Virgin Islands Police Department has culminated in a high-stakes felony arrest after officers and local surveillance cameras witnessed a motorist driving under the influence, reversing at high speed, and running over her own passenger twice in a Smith Bay parking lot.

The defendant, identified in Superior Court dockets as Asia Brathwaite, was arrested in the early morning hours of July 3, 2026, and officially charged with Driving Under the Influence (DUI), Reckless Endangerment, Negligent Driving, and operating a vehicle with an Illegal Blood Alcohol Content.

THE MIDNIGHT CHASE AND COLLISION

According to sworn police affidavits filed in the St. Thomas-St. John District, VIPD Sergeant Joycelyn Lee-Bobb and Officer Chariise Raymond were conducting a roaming patrol on Emile Francis Drive at approximately 11:43 PM on Wednesday, July 1, 2026.

While traveling near the Lone Eagle Superette, officers observed a grayish vehicle reversing at a high rate of speed. The vehicle narrow missed a female pedestrian who appeared to be actively running away from the occupants of the car.

Moments later, as the vehicle continued its erratic movement, the front-seat passenger door flew open. The passenger fell completely out of the moving vehicle and onto the asphalt.

Instead of braking, the operator drove directly over the fallen passenger. The driver then engaged the vehicle again, running over the passenger a second time before coming to a stop.

THE SURVEILLANCE EVIDENCE

While the initial roadside observations were chaotic, forensic investigators secured airtight confirmation the following day. On July 2, 2026, authorities reviewed closed-circuit television (CCT TV) camera footage overlooking the Lone Eagle Superette intersection and the adjacent Lakes Chicken Fry parking lot.

The video evidence explicitly detailed the nightmare sequence: an unknown female crossing the intersection toward the parking lot, followed immediately by Brathwaite's 2006 green Toyota RAV4 approaching at a high rate of speed.

The footage tracks the driver and passenger side doors swinging open before the vehicle aggressively reversed toward the fleeing pedestrian. The tape then clearly captures the passenger door flying open wider, the passenger tumbling to the ground, and the RAV4 rolling over her frame twice.

ALCOHOL AND EXPIRED REFUSALS

The victim, later identified by investigators as Kathia Liverpool, miraculously survived the double-run-over. When emergency medical services arrived on the scene via central dispatch, Liverpool refused medical treatment and was subsequently transported to the Roy Lester Schneider Hospital via a private vehicle.

When officers confronted the operator, Asia Brathwaite, they detected a powerful odor of alcohol on her breath. Police logs note she was unable to maintain her balance while standing or walking, and her eyes were watery and bloodshot.

When questioned on the scene, Brathwaite admitted to officers, stating she had consumed two shots of rum earlier that evening.

A subsequent field sobriety test administered by traffic units demonstrated a total failure of physical coordination, including a distinct lack of smooth pursuit during horizontal eye tracking and an inability to maintain balance during walk-and-turn instructions.

Brathwaite was detained and transported to the Richard Callwood Command Traffic Investigation Bureau. An intoximeter breath test officially detected her blood alcohol level to be .124 percent—significantly higher than the territory's legal limit of .08 percent.

ACCOUNTABILITY AND THE ALGORITHM

Bail for Brathwaite was set at $1,500.00 by order of the Superior Court, and she was processed and turned over to the Bureau of Corrections pending her advice of rights hearing.

This case stands as a stark, unyielding reminder of the volatility on territorial roads when alcohol enters the equation. It is the type of raw, direct-to-docket reality that highlights the vital necessity of local, independent reporting.