COALVILLE, Utah, Nov. 27, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A 64-year-old driver was arrested Sunday in the Coalville area after Summit County Sheriff officials say he was reported as being “belligerently drunk” by a family member, then allegedly struck a pickup truck and a Utah Highway Patrol vehicle before fleeing both scenes.
Rusty Mckay was arrested at 1:10 a.m. for investigation of:
- Assault on a police officer/military with use of dangerous weapon, a second-degree felony
- Failure to respond to officer’s signal to stop, a third-degree felony
- Driving under the influence, first offense in 10 years, a class B misdemeanor
- Two counts of failure to comply with duties at vehicle accident with property damage, a class B misdemeanor
At 12:33 a.m., dispatch was alerted to the allegedly intoxicated driver in the area of south Oakview Drive at Rockport Estates, says Mckay’s affidavit, filed by an officer of the Summit County Sheriff’s Office. A Utah Highway Patrol trooper also responded to the area.
At 12:52 a.m., dispatch got a call from a pickup driver who said Mckay, naming him specifically, had run into a tree and the caller’s pickup truck before leaving the scene, the statement says.
The trooper spotted the Kia Sorento driven by Mckay near the neighborhood entrance, the affidavit says. Moments later, the Kia “rammed his patrol vehicle, and was now fleeing from him,” arrest documents say, noting the officer’s patrol vehicle had emergency lights activated at the time it was struck, nearly head on.
The trooper next reported the Kia had crashed.
“I observed the Kia on the hillside between SR-32 and the lower parking lot of the nearby Rockport Estates neighborhood,” the SCSO statement says. “I observed one male occupant in the vehicle seated behind the wheel. The driver, later identified by Maine driver license photo and physical description as Rusty Mckay was removed from the vehicle and taken into custody.”
Mckay smelled strongly of alcohol, the statement says. He was booked into the Summit County jail, and ordered held without bail.
