A 41-year-old Traverse City woman involved in a crash Thursday in Bingham Township, may face criminal charges.
According to the county Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched about 5 p.m., to the 400 block of S. Lake Leelanau Drive for a report of malicious destruction of property complaint.
Upon arrival the investigating deputy made contact with the reporting party. While speaking with the reporting party, the suspect returned to the area and was seen by the deputy, who was able to immediately make contact with the suspect about the incident.
The female suspect, appeared to be under the influence of either drugs or alcohol, as she was contacted by the deputy. As the interaction continued, the female became extremely argumentative with the deputy, acknowledged that she was not going to cooperate and that he would have to chase because she was going to flee the scene. The deputy immediately attempted to have the suspect exit her vehicle with negative results. A physical confrontation transpired and during the altercation the suspect was able to put the vehicle in drive. The deputy fearing for his safety de-escalated. The suspect then drove off intentionally ramming the patrol vehicle before leaving the scene. The deputy gave chase after determining that his patrol vehicle was still functioning properly. Thesuspectdrove south on S. Lake Leelanau Drive at a high rate of speed and ultimately crashed and rolled the suspect vehicle over on S. Lake Leelanau Drive just north of Bingham Road.
The deputy arrived at the scene and immediately began rendering assistance because the suspect was trapped as a result of the crash. Fire and Rescue personnel arrived on scene shortly after and were able to safely extricate the suspect. She was transported to Munson Medical Center for treatment for her injuries.
A report has been compiled and forwarded to the Leelanau County Prosecutor for review. The charges requested are operating while intoxicated 3rd offense, resisting and obstructing, malicious destruction of police property and fleeing and eluding.
The Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Suttons Bay / Bingham Fire and Rescue Department.
