NDHP: fleeing a traffic stop puts the public in danger

BISMARCK, N.D. ( KXNET ) — The decision by one driver to flee a traffic stop on the night of Wednesday, July 10th, led to law enforcement from the North Dakota Highway Patrol (NDHP), Bismarck Police Department (BPD) and Morton County Sheriff’s Office to pursue the individual through two cities, before apprehending him in Mandan.

“We had the aircraft in the air, we followed the vehicle for over an hour on the ground. The vehicle just didn’t want to stop. It drove through North Bismarck and South Bismarck, and up and down Washington Street,” explained NDHP Sergeant Jeremiah Bohn.

Sergeant Bohn said that law enforcement kept pursuing the driver as he eventually left Bismarck and accelerated his speed as he drove across Memorial Bridge into Mandan. “He started driving very recklessly, running through red lights, stop signs while turning his headlights off several times throughout this incident,” said Bohn.

Sergeant Bohn said the driver drove down 3rd street in Mandan with its headlights off, passing pedestrians and other vehicles as law enforcement continued to pursue the vehicle. Continuing down 3rd Street, the driver ran another red light as he crossed Highway 1806.

“The Morton County officer saw the vehicle come through the intersection with its headlights off at a high rate of speed,” added Sergeant Bohn. He said that the officer tried to turn on his lights in an attempt to pull the driver over, but he kept going.

He eventually turned on to 19th Avenue into a residential neighborhood. “All the emergency lights were turned-off and the airplane followed it. Then the vehicle ended up coming out by the dog park near Highway 1806,” explained Sergeant Bohn.

According to Sergeant Bohn, two Troopers then set down spike strips on the roadway that eventually flattened all four tires of the vehicle when the driver drove over them. However, the driver continued to flee law enforcement with all four of his vehicle tires deflated.

Finally, troopers used an intervention technique in which they used their own vehicles to stop the driver. “One of the Troopers went out and pitted the vehicle, then the vehicle spun around, and regained control before he pitted it a second time, where it came to rest,” said Sergeant Bohn.

Sergeant Bohn says law enforcement later found out during an investigation that the driver was driving with a suspended license, a Class B Misdemeanor charge. According to Sergeant Bohn, the driver now faces a charge of felony reckless endangerment in Bismarck, along with several other charges in multiple jurisdictions where the chase took place.

“Usually, real bad things happen when you flee. Not only are you putting the public at risk, there’s pedestrians, there’s bicycle traffic, and there’s other motorcycles,” said Sergeant Bohn. “When you’re more interested in trying to get away, you’re not paying attention to traffic safety and stop signs.”

Sergeant Bohn reminds drivers that for their safety and the safety of others it’s best to stop if law enforcement should pull them over rather than flee and make a bad situation even worse.

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