Train Victims’ Mother Arrested in DUI

Jackie Robles, fighting to regain custody of her baby son after her two young daughters strayed from their Upland home and were struck and killed by a Metrolink train in October, was arrested Friday on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, authorities said.

Robles, 21, was arrested by a San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputy Friday morning after showing symptoms of being under the influence of drugs and failing coordination tests, department spokesman Chip Patterson said.

Robles was initially stopped by the traffic enforcement deputy after allegedly running a stop sign in Rancho Cucamonga, Patterson said.

She was alone in the vehicle, and the deputy found no evidence of drugs in the vehicle, Patterson said.

Robles is scheduled to appear in San Bernardino County Juvenile Court on Tuesday to regain custody of her 5-month-old son. He was taken from her Oct. 21--the day her two daughters, Alexus Robles, 3, and Deziree Soto, 22 months, wandered from their home and onto the railroad tracks half a block away after Robles had fallen asleep on her living room floor.

Robles was arrested on suspicion of felony child endangerment and jailed. Tests showed the presence of methamphetamines in her system. But prosecutors released her, saying they could not determine when she had taken the drugs or whether she was under the influence at the time of the tragedy.

Robin Johnson, Robles’ attorney in the custody issue, said Friday afternoon that she had not yet spoken to her client, but that she “would be very surprised” if Robles was under the influence of drugs when she was stopped.

“She knows she’s up for random drug tests,” Johnson said. “We’ll have to wait for the toxicology tests to come back.”

Robles was booked into County Jail in Rancho Cucamonga and was expected to be released Friday night.