While it isn’t uncommon for there to be reports of people falling asleep at the wheel due to being overly intoxicated, it will always be surprising to me. This particular situation is a great example of that, especially considering that the driver didn’t even realize that he was the one behind the wheel in the first place.
This particular encounter happened on 12/28/2025 at around 3:04 am, in Encinitas, California, but the footage was only recently released via the California Highway Patrol on Oceanside’s Facebook page.
After a brief encounter with a police officer who checked to see what was going on, the driver was shoved over so that law enforcement could take the wheel (literally). At first, I thought that maybe the driver had been having a medical episode and was unable to respond, but after a few questions, when he finally woke up in the passenger’s seat, it was clear that was not the case.
According to the video’s caption, it was a full-blown DUI. The officers at the California Highway Patrol in Oceanside even made sure to include a quick reminder about what to do if you do decide to head out for a night of drinking/
Officer to the Rescue
In the video, you can see a police officer say on his radio that a driver he had been following had come to a complete stop on I-5. Having noticed the stop as well as the fact that the vehicle had its hazard lights on, the officer decided to step out of his vehicle and assess the situation.
Upon opening the door, he realized that the driver was actually asleep. To ensure that other drivers on the road were safe from harm, the officer pushed the sleeping man to the passenger seat so that he could get in and drive the vehicle to a safe location.
Once he determined that it was okay, the officer ran over to the passenger’s side door, flung it open, and quickly determined whether or not the driver was having a medical episode. It didn’t take long for the officer to smell the alcohol on the driver’s breath and realize what was actually going on.
Putting Other Drivers at Risk
The very first thing that the officer, who remains unnamed throughout the video, says to the driver is, “Dude! What the heck is going on? Hey! Did you not realize that you’re asleep at the wheel?”
Interestingly, the driver claimed that he hadn’t even been driving at all. In fact, he said that his “boys” were driving him home. Clearly, there was no one else in the car with him, so the officers were quick to understand exactly what was going on.
A quick search of the car also confirmed their suspicions, especially once one of the officers mentioned that a bag with white powder in it was likely cocaine. This was not confirmed in this report.
There were also various other items among the man’s belongings, including what appeared to be cough drops and cigarettes.
Commenters React to the Viral Video
Commenters had a lot of opinions, as I am sure there would be after finishing the video myself. However, I didn’t imagine that they would be divided between those thanking the officers for their assistance and others upset that they seemed annoyed.
One of the very top comments reads, “My question is this. Why do your dispatchers sound so annoyed when someone calls in an obvious DUI?”
To this, another user responded with, “They’re annoyed even with actual medical problems, I called for my sons dads stroke and they legit kept telling me “I can’t understand when you calm down we can talk” even though I was freaking out! She could’ve just said what to do but nope I had to get mad and tell her “JUST TELL ME WHAT TO DO!!” Someone died and I also got told “I cannot help if you’re not calm” 🙃🙃”
Other comments were more positive, with antoher highly liked one reading, “Literally risked his life, to save the life of a man, who clearly doesn’t give a crap about his own life. Nobody gets paid enough money for that. Thank you California Highway Patrol. 🩷”
Again, this particular incident happened on 12/28/2025 at around 3:04 am, in Encinitas, California, and was only recently shared in a viral video on the CHP’s Facebook page. The driver of the vehicle’s name was not disclosed, and a search of the event didn’t yield results.
This video serves as a cautionary reminded to what could happen if you decide to drive while under the influence and how a night could quickly change. They wrote, “This weekend, the California Highway Patrol will conduct a statewide DUI Maximum Enforcement Period from 6:00 p.m. Saturday, June 20, through 6:00 a.m. Sunday, June 21. CHP officers across California will be out in force looking for impaired drivers and other dangerous violations.
Between 2023 and 2025, DUI-related crashes in California resulted in an average of more than 800 deaths and nearly 20,000 injuries each year.”