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Judge denies bond for Washington woman with five prior DUIs

by | Mar 22, 2026

Close up on the scales of justice on a small bronze statue over a blue background with copy space conceptual of law and order
(Courtesy/Adobe Stock)

‘[She] is a danger to the community’

A Rappahannock District Court judge refused Tuesday to release on bond a defendant facing her sixth DUI charge, saying she is “a danger to the community.”

Brittney Lee, 38, of Washington was denied bond after her arrest last week on charges of felony driving under the influence and driving on a suspended or revoked license. With her five previous DUI convictions, Judge Jessica Foster said that she poses a danger to the community if released. 

“Even the fifth conviction was not a motivator for Miss Lee to get treatment,” the judge said from the bench. “Miss Lee is a danger to the community … this court is denying bond.”

Lee, who appeared at her hearing by video from the RSW Regional Jail, was arrested March 9 after deputies were called to the scene of a one-vehicle accident on Route 211 in Amissville. During the hearing, Sheriff’s Lieutenant Chris Garcia testified that when he arrived on the scene, Lee told him the car had broken down and rolled into a ditch. Garcia said she “showed signs of intoxication” and failed field sobriety tests. 

Garcia told the judge empty alcohol containers were found in the vehicle. He said he was not able to obtain an accurate breath test immediately after the arrest, but about five hours later, Lee registered a 0.09 blood alcohol content — higher than the legal limit of 0.08. No witnesses reported erratic driving behavior before the vehicle went into the ditch, he testified. 

Lee’s attorney, Steven Duckett Jr., filed a motion for her to be released on bond. He told the judge that Lee has strong ties to the community, and would happily succumb to “certain guardrails” on her release such as the use of an alcohol monitoring bracelet that would alert authorities if her blood alcohol content rose, GPS monitoring and inpatient alcohol treatment. 

“Obviously these are serious charges … but she’s for certain not a flight risk,” Duckett said. 

Commonwealth’s Attorney Art Goff has recused himself from the case. Lee’s father, Bryant Lee, had been a longtime member of the Board of Supervisors. 

Special prosecutor Chapman Good, from Page County, argued that Lee’s history of driving under the influence makes it unlikely that the court “can craft conditions that will keep her off of the road.”

“If she decides to get drunk and drive somewhere,” he said, the authorities would not know until after the fact.

With bond denied, Lee will remain in the RSW Regional Jail, unless she appeals the decision and wins. She is scheduled to appear back in court on April 21 for a preliminary hearing.

Author

  • Ireland Hayes

    Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner.
    Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.
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By Ireland Hayes

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Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.