The Summit County Attorney’s office has filed charges against a semi-truck driver, who drove recklessly on Old Ranch Road, then fled a traffic stop, leading deputies on a chase that wound up on I-80. The court filings add some details to the story we’ve reported—including the suspect’s statement about why he fled the officer who pulled him over. Rick Brough has more.
The charges were filed last week against 41-year-old Dustin Charles Cullom, a California resident. The court filing and Probable cause Affidavit said that on December 15th, dispatch got five separate calls that a semi-truck was driving all over the road and forcing other cars off the pavement.
A county deputy pulled the semi-truck over near the intersection of Old Ranch Road and Trailside Drive. When the officer approached the truck on foot, the driver sped away. As the driver fled down Highland Drive, and then the Bitner and Rasmussen frontage roads, it ran four stop signs at a speed well over the limit, and forced numerous drivers to pull off the road into the snowbank.
When the suspect entered Interstate 80, a deputy attempted to pass the semi and get in front of it. The semi-truck swerved toward the deputy’s vehicle and forced him off the road.
The semi-truck was eventually stopped and the driver was taken into custody and Mirandized. He said that he fled the officer who pulled him over because unidentified “people” said they would kill him, his family and the deputy if he did stop.
Cullom has been charged with Aggravated Assault, Failure to Respond to an Officer’s Signal to Stop; Reckless Endangerment; and Reckless Driving. His initial court appearance is set for December 31st.