Actress Bullock unharmed in Gloucester car crash

(AP File Photo)

Sandra Bullock smiled at a 2005 news conference.

By Matt Viser, Globe Staff

GLOUCESTER -- Movie star Sandra Bullock and her husband were hit in a head-on collision by a drunk driver last night on East Main Street in this seaside town.

No one was injured, but both cars were towed. Lucille P. Gatchell, 64, of Gloucester was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and failure to stay in marked lanes, a police report said.

Gatchell's blood alcohol level was .20, more than twice the legal limit, the report said.

Bullock and her husband, Jesse James, were in a rented black 2008 Chevy SUV, which was being driven by Mark Hussey, 55, of Londonderry, N.H. Hussey told police he was driving down the road at 15 to 20 miles per hour when Gatchell's Subaru Forester veered into his lane.

Police responded to the accident at 9:50 p.m. The accident occurred outside the East Gloucester Laundromat.

"Mrs. Bullock was very personable and was concerned for (Gatchell's) well-being," said Police Officer Kevin Mackey, who responded to the scene.

Mackey said when he approached the scene James and Bullock were hugging each other. The couple were driven away about 20 minutes later by Bullock's security detail, he said.

Police are being inundated by calls from celebrity magazines, said Police Lieutenant Jerris Cook.

Bullock, 43, who is known for films such as "Speed," "Miss Congeniality," and "While You Were Sleeping," has been in the area to shoot a romantic comedy titled "The Proposal."

Lucille Gatchell's Gloucester police booking photo.

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