Jeanne M. Stralka

A Harrison woman, 53 year old Jeanne M. Stralka, was arrested early this morning by Baxter County Sheriff’s Deputy Brian Davis on felony Fleeing charges after she fled from and attempted to escape from Deputy Davis after he stopped her for a moving traffic violation.

Deputy Davis actually stopped Stralka twice. At approximately 3:57 AM on 08/02/2011, Deputy Davis stopped Stralka for driving left of the center of the roadway and stopping erratically in the middle of the roadway on State Highway 5 South in the Norfork area. During that stop, he issued Stralka a warning for the driving offense.

A short time later at approximately 4:22 AM, Deputy Davis observed Stralka once again traveling on State Highway 5 in the Salesville area. He again observed her commit driving offenses and initiated a second vehicle stop to make a more thorough inquiry. Three minutes into the second stop, Jeanne Stralka suddenly sped away from Deputy Davis in her vehicle, and he immediately gave chase. Stralka continued North bound on State Highway 5 toward Mountain Home at speeds in the 60-67 mile per hour range. Deputy Davis noted that Stralka was veering into the oncoming traffic lane and several time almost struck oncoming vehicles.

Sgt. Michael Holland was ahead of the pursuit and deployed spike strips at the intersection of State Highway 5 and Baxter CR 673. Stralka ran over these strips, which resulted in two of the tires on her vehicle becoming flattened. She continued driving, however, but was eventually boxed in by deputies near Mountain Home. After a physical struggle, Stralka was taken into custody at 4:41 AM and transported to the Baxter County Detention Center.

Jeanne M. Stralka was charged with Reckless Driving (misdemeanor), Fleeing from Police in a Vehicle (felony), and with Resisting Arrest (misdemeanor). Bond was initially set at $15,000. She will appear in Baxter County Circuit Court at a later date.

John F. Montgomery Baxter County Sheriff