Beaverton DUII suspect arrested with hamster on her lap
BEAVERTON, Ore. -- A simple trip to the store early Tuesday morning turned out to be a bad decision for a Beaverton woman.
The decision was nearly fatal for her little hamster.
Beaverton's Nicole Huey, 27, was driving to a store at 12:35 a.m. Oct. 16 when she was pulled over by police, which is when they saw Huey had a hamster loose on her lap, according to a Beaverton police spokesman.
Officers arrested Huey on a DUII charge and took her to the police department.
Meanwhile, the hamster was still in Huey's vehicle. She told police she didn't have anyone who could retrieve the hamster from the scene and told police, "so you should just kill it." Officers told Huey her hamster would not be harmed and it would be taken to a safe place.
But getting the hamster to a safer place proved to be difficult when officers had a tough time catching it in Huey's car. It took three officers to capture the furry little passenger when one of them made a makeshift container from an evidence tube.
They took the hamster to the Emergency Veterinary Clinic of Tualatin.
Huey picked up the hamster from the clinic later Tuesday morning after she was released, police said.
Police said a lesson to learn from the incident -- other than do not drink and drive -- is it is not safe to drive with any type of animal on the driver's lap because it could interfere with the driver's ability to drive safely. Police said it is crucial to put an animal in some type of container for its safety when it is in a car.
She was probably driving a Kia Soul, and figured based on the commercials, that her hamster could be a designated driver for her since the hamsters drive the car in the commercial. In other news, that looks like one wicked train-wreck of a mug shot.
I can see her now in court telling the judge the hamster coerced her into leaving home, and that actually the hamster was driving, not her!
@jpk She should have said "The hamster was trying to get into Gere"....
She looks a lot like a Walgreen's pharmacy tech that I have seen before. Wonder if she is the same person....?
This begs for so many questionable jokes.
they are probably lovers!!! Poor hamster
Drop that little sucker off at 4th and S.W. Main Street in Portland. I'm sure someone will give it a "happy home".
Off topic but I can't believe it when I see people with fairly large dogs sitting on their laps while driving.Thats just begging for a accident to happen as well as the air bags will most likely kill a dog.
OHMYGOD! You mean the hamster could have been injured!? We've just heard from a PETA rep that this precious rodent was endangered, but she was still allowed custody of it. I think family services, or another of those PERS agencies should check on the welfare of this rat. She may be collecting Obama checks for him (her?), so there may also be fraud involved. OR, was the hamster really driving and she was just covering? We need to know the real facts on this.
@nostromo Yawn. TIme for your Xanax again.
 @pdxd  @nostromo Ah, more pearls of wit from the airport panhandler. How's business, and are you considered a 'job created' by Barrack?
I can not understand why she was allowed to have the hamster back. Not only did she put it in harms way by driving with it drunk but she then told the officers that they should kill it. Who does and says that about a pet they care about?
Boy she looks wasted.......
I would say that the officers were hamstrung in trying to capture the illusive  hamster. Them rodents are fiesty  and fast. Well, I bet some one got the video and posted it to YouTube..Later I bett he three officers had Hamster Jokes played on them. Yes officers can have fun too..
Was the hamster drunk too?
Seriously!! No pics of her hamster??
But was she driving a Kia Soul?
Perhaps add a charge of hamstering a fugitive.
I see people all the time with dogs or cats on their lap.
@Just Lookin......So have I. It's very unsafe and illegal in Washington. We need the same law.
 @Bdou  @Just I second that. I just saw someone with a yellow lab on his lap on 217... scary!Â
 @LOSPOT  @Bdou People are such idiots. They want the "dog on the lap while driving thing" for a status symbol instead of safe in the backseat where it belongs.
Wow! It sounds like the Beaverton police treated the hamster better than the people they "detain" who are of color. Beaverton police still maintain that good ole small town attitude that goes back to 1924; they like to question minorities regarding their reason for visiting Beaverton. As yet no one has come up with an acceptable reason. If only Oregon's constitution hadn't changed in 1924 they would still be enforcing the law.
 @Chester White The one and only time I was in the back of a Beaverton police car we begged the officer to to drive us through Taco Bell and he graciously did.
 @Jamie  @Chester White LOL love that story
 @Chester White Not sure about that but I know from personal experience there are Beverton Police and Washington county police that do not like CHL holders and openly show their bias.
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Although to be fare I have encountered at least one WC sheriff who was great and treated it like any other stop as it should be.
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I think like all professions there are some bad apples.
@FreedomRocks....It's Beaverton, not Beverton.
There's a lot of spelling/grammer police out there isn't there! I agree. Who cares how it's spelled you can still understand what your trying to say! Sheesh, PEOPLE! lol
 @badcat Man what about bunch of spelling and grammar police whiners...
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I am blogging on the IE while working and doing other things on the PC not trying to break out a report for the white house press staff so I am really not worried about fixing any typing mistakes or since I often dictate with DNS its grammar mistakes....or my own when doing it all old school.
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Take a long breath and focus on the content no one really cares if you are a grammar or spelling expert besides yourself...
 @FreedomRocks It's "fair" not "fare". =P
 @Bdou And before you respond I know I spelled spell wrong I did it on purpose...lighten up and focus on the points rather the typing errors...
 @Bdou Gee thanks after living in the town for 30 years I guess I still can't sepll it. We need better typing police like you on duty!!!
@Chester White .....the basis for that statement is what? Is this from first hand experience? Have you worked on the force? Just curious?
I like hamsters..! Â Â This woman sounds like a real nut-case, who definately shouldn't be allowed to have animals...
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Kudos to the Beaverton LEOs who took the time and trouble to make sure a little animal was taken to safety..!
Hamsters are particularly dangerous, especially when they decide to do the Hamster Dance!
@Mikey Choda Boy, use your Hamster Style.....
 @Mikey Dammit... now I got that music running through my brain. *sigh*
"...Richard Gere could not be reached for comment.."
 @richXXIII I think that was a gerbil. (Or should that be Gerebil?) ;-)
Enough about the hamster, what was her BAC???Â
So many Possibilities:)
Darn! The hamster was just starting to turn its life around...
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 @Dirtman I'm just grateful the hamster didn't get tazed.
This crazy beyotch has no empathy or consideration for animals. She should be prohibited from owning any pets for the rest of her life.
Was the hamster driving? Cause obviously this chick is out of her gourd..... loser.
 @Funky-Munky Maybe it was her designated driver?
Geez, why not walk to the store if you are drunk..
 @dougrpdx Being drunk in public is a crime too. She should have just had a pizza delivered.
She couldn't find her hamster's leash?
Mighty kind of the police to care for the hamster when it's "owner" told the police to kill it... WTF?
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 @negativerep The PPB probably would have.
 @negativerep Likely she hoped they would so she could sue and get millions...
 @FreedomRocks  @negativerep Same thing crossed my mind, too.