Ranger Zach Summerlin was on patrol in the area of West Mountain Drive on February 3rd when he encountered an erratic driver. Summerlin stopped the vehicle and made contact with the female driver, who showed obvious signs of impairment. Summerlin also noted that a small child was secured in a car seat behind the driver.  As he began a field sobriety test on the driver, she became augmentative, began to act irrationally, and began denying that she had not done well on the administered field sobriety tests. Summerlin then radioed dispatch for immediate assistance. Suddenly, without warning, the woman ran towards and entered her vehicle. Summerlin unsuccessfully attempted to stop her from fleeing as she broke free from him and got behind the wheel. A struggle ensued, but the woman was able to put the car into drive and sped off. Summerlin had to let go of the fleeing vehicle for his safety, then pursued the car as it left the park. As the woman attempted to get away, she struck a telephone pole guide wire and nearly flipped her car over, only to once again continue her escape attempt. A short distance later, the fleeing sedan struck another vehicle, leaving it disabled in the middle of the road. The woman continued fleeing for several more miles before the vehicle came to a stop in front of her mother's house. Due to damage to her car, she had to be extricated from its passenger side. EMS arrived on scene and checked the 18-month-old child, who was found to be uninjured. The child was turned over to child protective services, which took her into protective custody pending a hearing on the incident. Summerlin booked the woman into the county jail and charged her with felony fleeing, felony child endangerment, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, assault on a federal officer, second offense DWI, and resisting arrest. The entire incident was captured on a NPS dash-mounted mobile video camera and a park-issued body video camera that Summerlin was wearing at the time of the incident. These videos will no doubt play an important role in the woman’s prosecution. 

Contact Information
Name: John Hughes, Chief Ranger