Driver rescued from Beaufort marsh tried to hit ex-girlfriend with car, police say
A driver rescued Saturday after she drove into a Beaufort marsh was trying to hit her ex-girlfriend with a car when she got stuck, according to police.
The Beaufort Police Department charged Marti Calder, 52, of Beaufort with domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature on Saturday.
Firefighters extracted Calder from the marsh off Boundary Street past Marsh Road, after she crashed and passed out after midnight early Saturday, a Beaufort Police report stated.
Her ex-girlfriend told officers that earlier Friday night, they argued at Hemingway’s Bistro in Beaufort, drove off together and continued to fight when Calder said she “was going to die with her,” the report said.
The ex-girlfriend jumped out of the car near Starbucks. She said she had to dive out of the way to avoid being hit by Calder.
She was on the phone with 911 when the car went into the marsh, and Beaufort Police listened to the call to verify what happened, the report said.
Firefighters with City of Beaufort/Town of Port Royal Fire Department arrived after midnight and had to break the backseat window to reach an unresponsive Calder.
Officers found an open propane tank in her car.
She was taken to Beaufort Memorial Hospital and then booked into the Beaufort County Detention Center around 7 a.m.
A reporter sent an unanswered Facebook message to Calder on Tuesday morning.
Domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature is a felony. Conviction could result in up to 20 years in prison, according to S.C. law.
