Three people were arrested and guns were recovered after a Lake County sheriff’s deputy was struck by a car fleeing a traffic stop, leading to a high-speed police pursuit in Wisconsin.
A Lake County sheriff’s deputy spotted a vehicle speeding 19 mph over the posted limit around 12:20 a.m. Monday.
The deputy conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle on Route 41 near Route 173 in Wadsworth, according to Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.
The deputy asked the driver, identified as Jordon Cunningham, 25, of North Chicago, to exit the vehicle after smelling a strong smell of cannabis inside the car.
Covelli said that Cunningham refused to exit and instead hit the accelerator, causing his open driver’s side door to strike the deputy as he fled.
Cunningham quickly merged onto Interstate 94 and fled into Wisconsin.
Lake County sheriff’s deputies notified law enforcement in Wisconsin and they located the vehicle, Covelli said.
The vehicle fled from police in Wisconsin at speeds of over 120 mph.
A tire deflation device was successfully deployed by police and Cunningham’s vehicle came to a stop in the area of Interstate 94 and 104th Street in Pleasant Prairie.
Covelli said the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office took the three occupants of the vehicle into custody.
An AR-15 and two pistols were thrown out of the vehicle, along with a large bag that contained smaller bags of cannabis, during the pursuit.
Those were recovered and charges are being pursued by law enforcement in Wisconsin.
An arrest warrant was obtained in Lake County charging Cunningham with aggravated battery to a peace officer, a Class 2 felony, and aggravated fleeing to elude a peace officer, a Class 4 felony.
Cunningham was also issued numerous traffic violations. He remains held in Kenosha County Jail on a number of Wisconsin charges.