The Esperanza Center opened uninterrupted Monday, even after a man who police say was driving while intoxicated crashed a vehicle into the center’s entrance on Sunday.
Around 5 a.m. Sunday, a police officer approached a man whom the officer believed to be intoxicated as the man attempted to get into his vehicle. Despite orders from the officer, the man got into the car and drove off, hitting two curbs and crashing into a building in the 400 block of South Broadway.
The man, whom officials have not identified, was pulled from the car, placed under arrest and transported to the hospital, Vernon Davis, a police spokesperson, said in an email.
The man was transported to a hospital for treatment, then taken to Central Booking. He now faces several charges, including driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, negligent driving and attempting to elude police, officials said.
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By Monday, the Esperanza Center, which is located at 430 South Broadway, was reopened for services despite the accident, according to a post on social media. The accident damaged their entrance, officials said.
Repairs began and no one was injured. Representatives for the center did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
The Esperanza Center offers educational, health, legal, family reunification and community referral services to immigrants. This includes providing legal counseling and representation in immigration cases, adult English language classes, assistance with benefits applications and more.
The center was founded in the early 1960s as a way to help Baltimore’s growing Spanish-speaking population adjust, and became a part of Catholic Charities in the early 1980s.
Esperanza Center was one of the immigrant advocacy organizations that offered support, specifically covering travel costs and accommodations, for the family members of the six men who died while working on the Francis Scott Key Bridge when it collapsed last year.
WJZ’s Christian Olaniran contributed to this article. WJZ is a media partner of The Baltimore Banner.
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