NEPHI, Utah, July 22, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — A woman led troopers on a chase reaching speeds of 125 mph through multiple counties Monday.
A probable cause statement from the 4th District Court of Fillmore said Louise Locke, 61, is facing charges of:
- Failure to stop or respond at command of police, a third-degree felony
- Reckless driving, a class B misdemeanor
Just after 7 p.m. Monday, a Utah Highway Patrol trooper was northbound on Interstate 15 near milepost 173 in Nephi when he saw a silver Ford Mustang traveling southbound at 121 mph.
“I turned through the median and the vehicle was already passing multiple cars and was out of sight shortly thereafter,” the statement said. “I activated my lights and attempted to catch up to the Mustang. I contacted the Millard County Sheriff’s office and advised them that a silver Mustang was heading their way at a high rate of speed.”
Two deputies got on the freeway at milepost 167 when the Mustang was passing their location at 125 mph, the statement said.
“They initiated a pursuit but were not able to catch up to the Mustang,” the statement said. “I was able to eventually catch up to the Mustang south of Fillmore and got close enough to the vehicle that I should have been visible near milepost 158. I then initiated a pursuit. At one point the Mustang was slowed down to 80 mph due to traffic blocking both lanes. As soon as the traffic cleared the Mustang sped back up to more than 120 mph.”
The officer continued to follow the vehicle to milepost 143 where he entered a construction zone and terminated the pursuit. Richfield dispatch passed the information along to Cedar dispatch.
“I then received information that the vehicle had been located at the Wendy’s drive-through in Beaver,” the statement said. “A Beaver County deputy was on I-15 just north of Beaver when he saw the Mustang traveling southbound at 120 mph. The Mustang then exited the freeway at milepost 112 where it entered the drive-through for Wendy’s.”
The deputy took the woman into custody at the drive-through. The UHP Nephi officer responded to the scene and took custody of the female, who was identified by a New York driver’s license as Locke. The suspect acknowledged that she saw our vehicles “but thought that we were giving her the go-ahead to continue traveling southbound,” the statement said.
Locke was transported to Millard County Jail with her bail set at $5,700.
From the Story: “The suspect acknowledged that she saw our vehicles ‘but thought that we were giving her the go-ahead to continue traveling southbound,’ the statement said.”
You thought they were “giving you the go-ahead”? To keep traveling 120 MPH? Uh-huh. Right. Sure. I believe that. I also believe in leprechauns and unicorns and Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy and true love. I don’t know how long you were planning to stay in Utah, Ms. Locke; more than likely, you were simply passing through. But something tells me that you’re going to have a much more protracted stay in Utah than you originally planned. (You might bail out and come back, but still …)