An elderly woman in Southern Utah was placed under arrest after allegedly leading police on a chase that ended with tire spikes. Reportedly, police tried to conduct a traffic stop over her window tint.
As reported by St George News, citing a probable cause statement, the incident occurred on Monday, June 1. At the time, a Utah Highway Patrol trooper was near mile marker 128 on Interstate 15.
Suddenly, the trooper saw a passing sedan heading northbound. She noticed, however, that the vehicle’s window tint seemed “darker-than-legal.”
As a result, the trooper merged onto I-15 with her emergency lights on and attempted to conduct a traffic stop. Then, things began to escalate.
Pursuit Begins
The driver allegedly refused to pull over. Therefore, a pursuit began, with the Utah trooper contacting dispatch about it at mile marker 130 northbound.
Around 12 miles later, the driver stopped. Responding officers approached the suspect, but she allegedly chose to flee the scene again.
At that Point, the Millard County Sheriff’s Office became involved in the pursuit. At mile marker 153 northbound, tire spikes were deployed.
Tire Spikes Do the Job
The driver crossed the spikes, putting an end to the pursuit. Still, the suspect allegedly remained noncompliant.
As per an affidavit, multiple law enforcement agents, once again, approached the fleeing vehicle. The woman behind the wheel, however, said that she would not exit the vehicle.
As a result, the woman was removed from her car. She was placed under arrest immediately and brought back to Beaver County.
Provided Context, Charges
The driver was identified as 65-year-old Patricia Gale Park. Jail booking information obtained by St George News details that she is originally from Magna, Utah.
Furthermore, the affidavit detailed that the woman, who had no ties with the community, is currently estranged from her children. She is also, police said, in current eviction status from her residence, whose location was not listed.
Park was booked into the Beaver County Jail. She is charged with failure to respond to an officer’s command to stop, interfering with a police officer (misdemeanor), and a window tint violation (infraction). If convicted of her failure to respond charge, which is a third-degree felony, she could spend up to five years behind bars and be ordered to pay a mandatory $1,000 fine.
Patricia Gale Parkm, as of Thursday, June 5, was being held at Beaver County Jail without bail. Her initial court appearance was scheduled for Friday, June 5, before 5th District Judge Meb Anderson.