Eureka Police allege that a 46-year-old High Ridge committed 37 traffic violations while he led police on two high-speed chases and crashed his Jeep on the I-44 exit ramp in Pacific early on Jan. 22.
The man, suspected of driving while intoxicated, was arrested after the crash, then booked and released to a sober driver, Eureka Police reported.
Capt. David Wilson said police are seeking charges for resisting arrest, DWI, and careless and imprudent driving against the man through Eureka Municipal Court.
An officer first encountered the driver at about 1 a.m. when he saw a 2004 Jeep Cherokee make a right turn onto northbound Hwy. 109 from Truitt Drive, traveling at a low rate of speed. When the Cherokee passed the officer’s vehicle, it sped up and allegedly went through a red light near the I-44 exit ramp, nearly striking another vehicle, police reported.
The officer saw the Jeep swerve several times on Hwy. 109 before it turned right off the highway and made a U-turn at Elk Run Drive and Fawn Meadows Drive. The officer turned on his vehicle’s lights and the driver then nearly struck the police vehicle while turning left onto southbound Hwy. 109, the report said.
The Jeep then turned right onto East Fifth Street, allegedly turning into oncoming traffic. The driver continued west on Fifth Street, reaching a speed of about 80 mph, before the officer stopped pursuing the vehicle as it traveled toward Workman Road, according to the report.
The officer saw the Jeep a short time later, traveling south on Six Flags Road. The Jeep was stopped at a red light at Fox Creek Road when the officer turned on his lights, the report said.
The Jeep then allegedly went through the red light and drove onto the westbound I-44 exit. Another officer was traveling west on I-44, and the Jeep nearly hit that police vehicle, according to the report.
The Jeep allegedly reached a speed between 85 and 100 mph as it drove west on the interstate, and officers ended their pursuit when the vehicle reached Franklin County. However, when officers exited the interstate at the Pacific exit, they saw the Jeep had crashed on the exit ramp, the report said.
The driver was ordered to get out of the Jeep, but instead, he put the vehicle in reverse, allegedly in an attempt to hit the officers, who had drawn their guns. The Jeep did not hit the officers, but hit the metal guardrail, according to the report.
The driver attempted to get back onto I-44, but the Jeep hit another guardrail, traveled backward off the exit and into a ditch. The driver got out of the Jeep but allegedly did not respond to officers’ orders to lie on the ground. Instead, the driver put his hands in his pockets and allegedly started to approach the officers, the report said.
An officer used a stun gun to subdue the man and arrested him at about 2 a.m. The officers allegedly smelled alcohol while arresting the man, according to the report.