Police say a DUI suspect crashed head-on into a Ceres Police Department patrol SUV on Nov. 10, 2025, on Herndon Road. The sergeant driving the patrol vehicle suffered minor injuries.
A 64-year-old Ceres woman was arrested Monday night after police say she drove into a patrol vehicle while intoxicated, marking the second time in five days that a DUI driver has collided with a Ceres Police Department vehicle.
The crash happened around 10:44 p.m. Nov. 10 as officers were responding to a call in the 2300 block of Herndon Road, according to Ceres police.
A patrol sergeant was stopped in the northbound turn lane on Herndon Road when he saw a vehicle traveling southbound toward him. As it entered the turn lane directly in front of the patrol SUV, the sergeant activated his emergency lights to warn the driver, police said.
Despite that, the driver, Cynthia Rae Winkler, failed to slow down and struck the marked patrol vehicle head-on.
Additional officers arrived to check on both drivers. Police said they immediately noticed the odor of alcohol and other signs of intoxication from Winkler. Field sobriety tests gave officers probable cause to believe she was driving under the influence, according to police.
Further investigation showed Winkler was on active probation for a prior DUI arrest. Her blood-alcohol concentration was later determined to be nearly three times the legal limit, police said.
Winkler was arrested and booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center on felony DUI charges. She was not injured in the crash.
The sergeant suffered minor injuries, received medical treatment at the scene and was released.
Ceres police noted the incident was the second time in less than a week that a drunk driver has crashed into one of the department’s patrol vehicles. The agency urged motorists to plan for a sober ride if they intend to drink and to call 911 if they see an impaired driver on the road.
This story was originally published November 12, 2025 at 6:22 PM.
