GRANTSVILLE, Utah, March 19, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — Officials have identified a woman booked into the Tooele County Jail after police said Monday that she stole a vehicle, attempted to hit a pedestrian and then fled from officers at dangerously high speeds.
The suspect has been identified as Wendianne Crystal Howk, 24. According to information on the jail website, she was booked on suspicion of:
- Aggravated assault — attempted unlawful force
- Theft — wrongful appropriation
- Evading — not responding to officer
- Unauthorized control of a vehicle
- Paraphernalia possession
- Driving on a revoked/suspected licences
- Stop sign failure to yield
-
DUI
Howk also was wanted on three out of state warrants.
It was spotted on Ellerbeck Road near Interstate 80, a news release from Grantsville City PD said.
The female driver couldn’t maintain her lane and was driving recklessly. She fled when officers attempted to stop the vehicle.
Driving wildly at speeds of more than 120 miles an hour, she nearly caused several wrecks, and officers determined that she was “an immediate risk to public safety,” the release states.
With assistance from the Utah Highway Patrol and Tooele County Sheriff’s Office, a Grantsville officer conducted a PIT maneuver to bring the vehicle to a stop before it could get onto I-80 at Exit 84. The vehicle was disabled on the on ramp.
The woman, now identified as Howk, was arrested, and officers checked the vehicle, where they found “multiple drug paraphernalia items and the dog belonging to the stolen vehicle’s owner, which was still in good health,” the release said.
“A drug recognition expert with the Grantsville City Police Department conducted field sobriety tests on the driver and found her to be impaired and under the influence of a controlled substance.”
Howk was transported to the hospital to be checked for any injuries from the crash. After she was cleared, she was taken to the Tooele County Jail.
According to the news release, an officer sustained minor injuries to his arms when the airbag deployed during the PIT maneuver. He was treated at a nearby hospital and released.
