Authorities used a rolling road block to stop a Texas man following a brief, high speed pursuit that ended near Kingston Wednesday.
Joe Martinez, 50, is currently being held in the Bryan County Jail at Durant following the pursuit from western Bryan County after he fled from his estranged wife’s home with a 3-year-old child Wednesday.
Officials said Martinez violated a protective order by showing up at the home. Reports said he was intoxicated and combative.
He fled in a pickup with the child as Bryan County deputies arrived.
Officers attempted to stop the pickup on a county road where Martinez turned west toward Lake Texoma and Kingston, according to Undersheriff Ken Golden.
OHP units joined in the pursuit when the pickup crossed Roosevelt Bridge. OHP Supervisor Capt. Eldon Matthews said Tactical Vehicle Intervention could not be used to stop the pickup due to the unrestrained, visible child in the vehicle.
Martinez allegedly ran two roadblocks by avoiding stop sticks and drove into Kingston. He returned to U.S. 70 and headed east. OHP Capt. Ron Hampton set a stationary roadblock which Martinez avoided and allegedly attempted to hit Hampton with his vehicle, continuing east and forcing several vehicles off the highway.
An OHP incident report said when a Bryan County deputy got in front of the fleeing vehicle, the driver went into the ditches.
Marked units prevented his re-entry to the highway. At this point Martinez allegedly rammed the side of an occupied Bryan County deputy’s unit and then rammed an occupied van containing three civilians.
A OHP trooper used his unit to strike the front of the suspect’s vehicle, rotating it about 45 degrees and pinning it against another deputy’s unit. OHP Troopers, sheriff deputies and a Kingston police officer removed the driver and took him into custody after a brief struggle.
Martinez was booked into jail on complaints of violating a protective order, child endangerment, driving under the influence and eluding.
Formal charges were being prepared by District Attorney Emily Redman’s office Thursday. OHP officials are recommending additional charges be filed in Marshall County: three counts of running a roadblock, assault on officer with a deadly weapon, assault and battery with deadly weapon (for the civilian vehicle struck), child endangerment and eluding. All are felonies.
Officials said four OHP officers, the Bryan County sheriff’s office and Kingston police were directly involved with the incident.
