---
title: "Democrat Krista Perez arrested for DUI after multi-vehicle crash"
publication: "MediaBias News"
url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/democrat-krista-perez-arrested-for-dui-after-multi-vehicle-crash"
api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/democrat-krista-perez-arrested-for-dui-after-multi-vehicle-crash"
markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/democrat-krista-perez-arrested-for-dui-after-multi-vehicle-crash.md"
audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/democrat-krista-perez-arrested-for-dui-after-multi-vehicle-crash"
category: "Politics"
area: "United States"
published: "2026-09-18T22:05:12.644Z"
source_reported: "2026-09-18T21:33:15.953Z"
updated: "2026-09-18T22:05:12.644Z"
trust_score: 42
critic_score: 61
hype_score: 41
assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis"
fact_check_status: "not-performed"
coverage_measured: "2026-09-18T22:01:14.337438+00:00"
---

# Democrat Krista Perez arrested for DUI after multi-vehicle crash

*Washington state House candidate admitted to drinking wine and declined sobriety tests.*

**Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): 

- Trust 42 of 100, higher is better. Central claims attributed to named sources, but key facts hedged with "reportedly" and anonymous sourcing.
- Craft 61 of 100, higher is better. Reporting includes quotes, names, and details, but lacks context and right of reply.
- Hype 41 of 100, lower is better. Headlines promise emotional content, with some loaded adjectives, but the body is factual.

Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology.

**The short version**

- Washington state Democrat Krista Perez was arrested for DUI after allegedly striking parked cars and causing a multi-vehicle collision.
- Perez admitted to drinking wine and declined field sobriety tests.
- Police video shows Perez praying and crying in the back of a patrol car after her arrest.
- Prosecutors charged Perez with DUI and a refusal enhancement, to which she pleaded not guilty.

Washington state Democrat Krista Perez, a candidate for a state House seat, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence on August 11. According to Tacoma Police, Perez's vehicle allegedly struck a parked car, initiating a chain reaction that damaged five vehicles. Perez admitted to consuming wine and declined to take field sobriety tests. She later pleaded not guilty to the charges of DUI and a refusal enhancement.

## Disagreement on charges

Prosecutors charged Perez with DUI and a refusal enhancement, as reported by The New York Ledger and Conservative Journal Review. However, the Washington State Standard digest states she is charged with a DUI with an enhancement for refusing a breath test, and MY Northwest reports she was charged with DUI after a five-vehicle crash.

## What the coverage left out

None of the left-rated digests mention the specific number of vehicles damaged in the collision, which was reported as five by multiple centre and right-rated outlets. The left-rated reports also do not mention Perez's admission to drinking wine or her refusal of field sobriety tests.

## Who covered it

Shares of the 26 covering outlets with a published leaning rating:

- Left: 8% (2)
- Centre: 19% (5)
- Right: 73% (19)

4 of 30 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-09-18T22:01:14.337438+00:00.

**Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 2 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-09-18T22:30:44.377Z.

## How the sides framed it

### Left

- The two left-rated reports focused on the charges against Krista Perez. Washington State Standard reported that Perez pleaded not guilty to driving under the influence and is charged with a DUI with an enhancement for refusing a breath test. Mediaite's headline stated, "Democratic Candidate Sobs and Prays in Police Footage During DUI Arrest."

### Centre

- The centre-rated reports highlighted the police video of Perez's arrest. The New York Ledger's full report detailed Perez admitting to drinking wine, declining sobriety tests, and praying and crying in the patrol car. Komo News reported that police video showed the arrest a week after her primary victory. Similarly, KFOX reported prosecutors charging Perez with a DUI and refusal enhancement, while Internewscast noted she sobbed and prayed after the arrest.

### Right

- The right-rated reports predominantly focused on Perez's emotional state during the arrest and her actions. Headlines frequently mentioned her crying, sobbing, and praying in the patrol car, with outlets like Slay News describing it as a "Meltdown." Many reports, including those from MY Northwest, Conservative Journal Review, and Life and Liberty, noted that she admitted to drinking wine and refused sobriety tests after the alleged five-vehicle crash. Breitbart and The Gateway Pundit also highlighted her admission of drinking wine and refusal of tests, with The Gateway Pundit adding she rated herself a four on a sobriety scale.

**Provisional coverage gap:** left. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding.

## Factuality profile of the covering outlets

These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true.

- veryLow: 2
- low: 5
- mixed: 13
- high: 4
- unknown: 4
- veryHigh: 2

## Verification scope

This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true.

## Original reporting this was written from

- [Dailyfly - Lewis Clark Valley News](https://dailyfly.com/2026/09/18/120174) — Washington state House candidate pleads not guilty to DUI charge
- [washingtonstatestandard.com](https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/09/18/washington-state-house-candidate-pleads-not-guilty-to-dui-charge) — Washington state House candidate pleads not guilty to DUI charge • Washington State Standard
- [MY Northwest](https://mynorthwest.com/mynorthwest-politics/wa-krista-perez-dui/4277462) — WA House candidate Krista Perez pleads not guilty to DUI in Tacoma court
- [Slay News](https://slaynews.com/police-bodycam-democrat-candidate-melting-down-dui-arrest) — Police Bodycam Shows Democrat Candidate Melting Down After DUI Arrest
- [The American Tribune](https://theamericantribune.com/democrat-politician-caught-on-police-cam-crying-after-getting-arrested-for-dui) — Democrat Politician Caught On Police Cam Crying After Getting Arrested For DUI - The American Tribune.com
- [Conservative Journal Review](https://conservativejournalreview.com/washington-democrat-krista-perez-charged-with-dui-after-tacoma-crash-that-damaged-five-vehicles) — Democrat Krista Perez Charged with DUI After Tacoma Crash
- [Life and Liberty](https://thepatriotchronicles.com/news-for-you/watch-washington-democrat-candidate-krista-perez-refuses-sobriety-tests-then-sobs-after-five-car-crash) — Washington Democrat Candidate Krista Perez Refuses Sobriety Tests, Then Sobs After Five-Car Crash
- [The Western Journal](https://westernjournal.com/watch-dem-candidate-cries-uncontrollably-prays-squad-car-drunk-driving-arrest) — Dem Candidate Cries Uncontrollably, Prays in Squad Car After Drunk Driving Arrest
- [Breitbart](https://breitbart.com/pre-viral/2026/09/17/watch-washington-state-democrat-candidate-has-a-meltdown-in-patrol-car-after-dui-arrest) — Washington State Democrat Candidate Has a Meltdown in Patrol Car After DUI Arrest
- [100% FED UP!](https://100percentfedup.com/video-footage-shows-democratic-state-housendidate-crying) — Video Footage Shows Democratic State House Candidate Crying In Patrol Car Following Arrest For Alleged DUI – 100PercentFedUp.com – by Danielle
- [Komo News](https://komonews.com/news/local/police-video-shows-wa-house-candidates-dui-arrest-a-week-after-primary-victory-democrat-tacoma-seattle-alcohol-drunk-driving-car-accident) — Police video shows WA House candidate's DUI arrest a week after primary victory
- [WND](https://wnd.com/2026/09/sobbing-praying-dem-candidate-camera-insisting-she-can) — ‘Sobbing and praying’: Dem candidate on camera insists she can go home after drinking, causing 5-car crash * WorldNetDaily * by WND Staff
- [wndnewscenter.org](https://wndnewscenter.org/sobbing-and-praying-dem-candidate-on-camera-insisting-she-can-go-home-after-drinking-causing-5-car-crash) — ‘Sobbing and praying’: Dem candidate on camera insisting she can go home after drinking, causing 5-car crash * WND News Center
- [The Gateway Pundit](https://thegatewaypundit.com/2026/09/watch-washington-democrat-house-candidate-admits-she-drank) — Washington Democrat House Candidate Admits She Drank Wine, Refuses Sobriety Tests, Then Sobs and Prays in the Back of a Cop Car After Five-Car Crash * The Gateway Pundit * by Jim Hᴏft
- [The Daily Wire](https://dailywire.com/news/watch-dem-candidate-has-a-question-after-dui-arrest-its-a-doozy) — Dem Candidate Has A Question After DUI Arrest. It’s A Doozy.
- [Mediaite](https://mediaite.com/media/news/watch-democratic-candidate-sobs-and-prays-in-police-footage-during-dui-arrest) — Democratic Candidate Sobs and Prays in Police Footage During DUI Arrest
- [capitalisminstitute.org](https://capitalisminstitute.org/washington-democrat-krista-perez-caught-on-camera-sobbing-and-praying-after-dui-arrest-that-damaged-five-vehicles) — Democrat Krista Perez DUI Arrest Body Cam Footage Released
- [kikar.co.il](https://kikar.co.il/world-news/tliags) — "God, Help Me": Democratic Candidate Filmed Crying in Car
- [abc 7 WJLA](https://wjla.com/news/nation-world/prosecutors-charge-washington-state-democratic-candidate-with-a-dui-sobriety-test-accident-alcohol) — Prosecutors charge Washington state Democratic candidate with a DUI
- [KFOX](https://kfoxtv.com/news/nation-world/prosecutors-charge-washington-state-democratic-candidate-with-a-dui-sobriety-test-accident-alcohol) — Prosecutors charge Washington state Democratic candidate with a DUI
- [Internewscast](https://internewscast.com/news/washington-democrat-krista-perez-sobs-prays-after-dui-arrest) — Washington Democrat Krista Perez Sobs, Prays After DUI Arrest
- [khbrknews](https://khbrknews.com/democrat-candidate-seen-sobbing-praying-in-patrol-car-after-dui-arrest-video) — Democrat candidate seen sobbing, praying in patrol car after DUI arrest: Video
- [New York Post](https://nypost.com/2026/09/17/us-news/washington-state-democratic-candidate-krista-perez-seen-sobbing-praying-in-patrol-car-after-dui-arrest) — Democrat candidate seen sobbing, praying in patrol car after DUI arrest
- [dailymail.com](https://dailymail.com/news/article-16137943/lawmaker-weeps-cop-car-arrest-driving-influence.html) — Aspiring Democratic lawmaker weeps in back of cop car after DUI arrest
- [quicknewsupdates.com](https://quicknewsupdates.com/washington-statehouse-candidate-charged-with-dui-as-arrest-video-is-released) — Washington statehouse candidate charged with DUI as arrest video is released - Quick News Updates
- [The New York Ledger](https://thenyledger.com/politics/democrat-candidate-seen-sobbing-praying-in-patrol-car-after-dui-arrest-video) — Democrat candidate seen sobbing, praying in patrol car after DUI arrest: Video
- [democraticaccent.com](https://democraticaccent.com/democrat-candidate-seen-sobbing-praying-in-patrol-car-after-dui-arrest-video) — Democrat candidate seen sobbing, praying in patrol car after DUI arrest: Video – Democratic Accent
- [wfmd.com](https://wfmd.com/2026/09/16/democrat-candidate-seen-sobbing-praying-in-patrol-car-after-dui-arrest-video) — Democrat candidate seen sobbing, praying in patrol car after DUI arrest: Video
- [Fox News](https://foxnews.com/politics/democrat-candidate-seen-sobbing-praying-patrol-car-dui-arrest-video) — Democrat candidate seen sobbing, praying in patrol car after DUI arrest: Video
- [Portal Mix Vale](https://mixvale.com.br/2026/09/16/washington-state-house-candidate-faces-dui-charges-after-collision-police-video-shows-emotional-arrest) — Washington State House Candidate Faces DUI Charges After Collision; Police Video Shows Emotional Arrest

## Questions

**What was Krista Perez charged with?**

Krista Perez was charged with driving under the influence (DUI) and a refusal enhancement. She pleaded not guilty to these charges.

**What did Krista Perez admit to?**

Perez admitted to drinking wine and stated she had one glass. She also declined to take field sobriety tests when asked by police.

**What happened during Krista Perez's arrest?**

Police video shows Krista Perez admitting to drinking wine and declining sobriety tests. She was also seen praying and crying in the back of a patrol car after her arrest.

---

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