Police Chase Ends on The Farm
Just before 2am Friday morning, my husband and I awoke to the lights and loud sirens of 8 police cruisers coming through our bedroom windows. Before we could get to the window, we heard a crash. This was particularly alarming considering our bedroom windows face the interior of our farm and there are no roads for miles in that direction. Ryan rushed downstairs while I stayed upstairs consoling our now wide-awake baby and checking on all of our children.
Through the window I can see a large truck impaled in the tree line just yards from our home. Moments later the officers are yelling "get on the ground, get on the ground!"
According to the Ohio State Patrol, a man driving a red Dodge 2500 was pulled over just north of Troy. When OSP approached the vehicle, he shut off his lights and took off headed north. He was going 100 mph at times, went up to Sidney, around the Aunt Millie's plant, down 25a, Miami Shelby road, and took 36 to Fletcher. OSP was joined by the Sidney K9 unit, multiple county deputies, and more OSP. He turned down our road and plowed through our gate, across our northern hay field past our high tunnel and then up our very long drive. When he got up to our home, instead of heading out to our eastern or southern pastures, he veered into our apple orchard and crashed into our children's play fort, just a few yards from our home.
The police were thankfully right behind him and he had no chance to run. I will never forget watching OSP put the driver on the ground and handcuff him next to my son's basketball hoop. The passenger's leg was broken so badly that she was left in the truck until the squad arrived.
I cannot say enough good things about the officers. They searched everywhere the driver had been on our property because he had been throwing drugs out of the window during the chase. They made sure nothing was left behind, drugs or trash or any broken metal/glass and doing so, ensured our children could play safely.
When the rollback finally left around 4am, Ryan and I were able to sit down and talk about all that had just transpired. We listed the things to thank God for.
Our children are safe and, other than the baby, slept through all of it!
No one died. No life threatening injuries to anyone.
The driver never had a chance to try to get into our home.
None of our animals were hurt. Our Mini-Belted Galloways were in the field along our lane and did jump their fence to get away from the lights and sirens.
Other than our farm gate which was completely demolished, we had no major property damage that won't heal within a couple months.
Our cattle were in one of our southern paddocks, had he gone through there, he could have hit them or they could have gotten out.
Had he gone through our eastern pastures, he would have destroyed our numerous internal electrified paddocks that Ryan just finished this spring. This would have been a very time-consuming and costly repair.
He didn't hit any of our barns, water hydrants, electrical boxes or the chicken tractor currently being built near the orchard.
He didn't hit any of our apple or peach trees.
Even our farm sign was spared because we left it off of the gate due to recent high winds.
All in all, hitting the tree line and being surrounded by police out in the orchard was likely the best case end to the chase at that point.
We never dreamed that something like this would happen out here. I told my husband that before the driver was handcuffed, it was quite unsettling because so many bad things could have happened. After the driver was put in the cruiser, our farm was the safest place in western Ohio because we had so many officers here.
Once the driver was booked into jail, we were able to see his mugshot and the other, more serious crimes he had committed prior to crashing on our farm. We are thanking the Lord that the police were so close that he didn't have a chance to attempt to enter our home. It was truly the best case scenario for us- and for him.
After we told our children what had happened on Friday morning, our son prayed that the "lady's leg would heal quickly". We went on to pray as a family that the driver would come to know Christ because only in Him is salvation, forgiveness and peace.
The big kids have fun plans to repair their fort. Ryan put up a temporary gate from another pasture after the officers left and then bought a new one once the store was open. Our sign is backup and thanks be to God, all is once again safe, calm and peaceful at Honest Pastures Family Farm.
