Driver fleeing from Joplin Police shuts down traffic at 15th and Range Line, cited for DWI, multiple charges

(From the Joplin Police Department)

On September 25, 2017 at 8:43pm our officers were dispatched to 2517 South New Hampshire for a disturbance.

When the first officer arrived, she saw a male outside yelling at another male in a vehicle. The male in the vehicle was attempting to leave and the other male was yelling to the officer that the male driving was “drunk.” The male reversed towards the officer and almost struck her with the vehicle. The officer ordered the male to stop and he instead drove away. The officer radioed the vehicle was fleeing northbound and was possibly an intoxicated driver.

A sergeant who was driving up to the call saw the vehicle and attempted a stop. The vehicle refused to stop, while driving normal speeds, with no lights on and weaving side to side on the roadway. 

The vehicle drove through a stop sign at 24th and Roland and then left the roadway and hit a mailbox and trash cans. The vehicle picked up speed, turned on its headlights, but continued to run stop signs. The vehicle regularly left the roadway and returned, further indicating the driver to be impaired. The vehicle also failed to stay on the right half of the road. 

The vehicle went through 15th and Range Line eastbound, failing to stop for the red light. Other officers had shut down the traffic at the intersection, preventing any innocent motorists from getting hit. The vehicle hit a “dip” in the road while crossing Rangeline, causing the vehicle to go airborne and turn sideways. The vehicle struck a yellow metal/concrete stop sign post in the parking lot of Wal-Mart. The impact caused the vehicle to roll over onto its top and slide about 150 feet on its roof. Officers contacted the driver and sole occupant in the vehicle and placed him under arrest. The driver wasn’t wearing a seat belt so he was taken to the hospital, evaluated and released to our jail.

The vehicle that ran was a 1998 Honda Accord. The driver, David T. Ingle, 29, Joplin, was arrested for felony fleeing/resisting arrest, careless and imprudent driving, felony property damage, no insurance and felony Driving While Intoxicated. Those charges have been submitted to the Jasper County Prosecutor’s Office for consideration.