Casper Woman Arrested For DUI, Failing to Stop for Police
A Casper woman was arrested Wednesday night after being reported as a drunken driver and allegedly refusing to stop for police.
Wendy Sue Palmer, 43, was booked into jail on charges of DUI and eluding officers. She will likely make her initial appearance in Natrona County Circuit Court at 2 p.m. Thursday.
Charging documents say an 'attempt to locate' call was sent out to Casper police officers shortly after 8:30 p.m. A citizen had called in to report a white vehicle with an undisclosed license plate number was driving erratically as it traveled west on Wyoming Boulevard from East 15th Street.
One officer who was also traveling west on Wyoming Boulevard decided to stop and wait for the vehicle at the intersection with Casper Mountain Road. A few minutes later, the officer spotted the reported vehicle passing by.
The officer caught up to the vehicle, a passenger car, and reportedly saw it drive out of its lane numerous times. The vehicle's speed fluctuated, and it would brake randomly.
The officer turned on his emergency lights and tried to stop the white vehicle, but it continued driving at about 20 mph. The officer tried to use his air horn and sirens to stop the vehicle, but had no luck.
Another officer joined in following the suspect vehicle until the passenger car finally pulled into the driveway of a home on West 39th Street.
Officers approached the vehicle with their firearms drawn, and a woman got out of the driver's seat. She stared at officers, who ordered her to get on the ground. The woman -- Palmer -- didn't understand the commands at first, court documents say, but she eventually complied.
Palmer was taken into custody. Officers could smell a strong odor of alcoholic beverages emanating from her.
According to the affidavit, Palmer said she didn't realize officers had been following her. She was "adamant" that the tint on her vehicle windows was so dark that she couldn't see the emergency lights. She claimed she couldn't hear the sirens because of music in her car, and due to her talking on the phone.
After performing standard field sobriety tests, Palmer was arrested for DUI and failing to stop.
Her blood-alcohol concentration is not listed in charging papers.