New Zealand
Forget texting and driving - the latest driver
distraction in the deep south is topless flashing.
Down on the farm, 18-year-old Cherelle Dudfield
can do whatever she wants. But when she flashed her breasts on
Invercargill's main street recently, she created a serious traffic
hazard.
After a night of drinking with her mates, Ms
Dudfield was dared to flash at passing cars. One motorist copped
such an eyeful he crashed into her.
"I stood on the centre line, flashed a couple of
cars, got back in and they told me to do it again, so I did," says
Ms Dudfield. "And then I saw a car coming towards me, on the middle
of the centre lane driving up towards me, so I decided to
run.
"And then I got hit."
Thinking she'd suffered serious injuries, her
friends took her to hospital.
"I didn't know where the blood was coming from
and didn't know if I could move," says Ms Dudfield.
They were only cuts and bruises, but police had no
sympathy.
"This was obviously an alcohol-involved offence,"
says Snr Sgt Olaf Jensen of Invercargill police. "This girl put
herself at risk with the actions that she undertook - not only
herself, but the motorists on the road at the time."
Ms Dudfield says she has learned her lesson, and
has a message for others considering drunken dares.
"Don't be me. Don't be stupid, don't get drunk
and stand in the middle of the road and flash anyone, 'cause it
hurts when you get hit."
After fronting up at court for the incident, Md
Dudfield was charged with disorderly behaviour and fined $275, a
small price to pay for what could have been a much bigger
booboo.
