A woman who escaped from a police car and stole $40 from the officer’s “patrol bag” pled guilty to reduced charges during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court last Monday.
Thirty-seven-year-old Brittney Wood’s charges included escape in the 3rd degree, possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia.
She was put on probation for 48 months.
She was also sentenced to time served on misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest and theft of property. Wood was given credit for 111 days served in the county jail.
Wood was arrested in late January when Mountain Home police officers went to the Super 8 Motel to deal with a person refusing to vacate a room.
The motel manager told officers that the occupant had not paid for the room and was resisting all attempts to get her to leave.
When officers arrived, the manager attempted to use a master key to gain entry to the room but the door would not open because the “dead bolt” had been put in place.
During the time officer were knocking, they reported hearing what sounded like movement in the room, a toilet tank lid being removed and a dog barking and growling.
An officer did talk to the person in the room, later identified as Wood, and she said she was getting dressed and would be out shortly.
She is reported to have been told a female officer was on scene and she could open the door and continue dressing.
After a wait of about ten minutes, the officer again demanded Wood open the door and she again said she was dressing. The officers told her if the door was not opened quickly, the motel management would “break the lock.”
A short time after being given the ultimatum, Wood was reported to have opened the door.
She was reported to have been no more cooperative after officers got into the room. She resisted being cuffed and demanded that officers not touch her.
Once in restraints, Wood was put into the back of a patrol car while the officer went to talk to the motel manager.
Other officers took control of the dog in the room.
When the officer returned to her patrol car, she noticed the driver’s side front door was unlocked, items in the vehicle were in disarray, the center slide to the “cage” was opened and Wood was gone.
The “cage” restricts access to the front seat from the area where prisons are seated.
The officer was able to access surveillance camera footage and saw Wood open the center slide and “appeared to be doing something in the front seat.”
She then left the police car by way of the driver’s side door and was reported to still have one handcuff in place. Wood was seen getting into a black Chevrolet truck which left the scene.
The owner of the truck was identified and police spoke to him. He admitted giving a woman a ride and agreed to show police where he had taken her.
Officers were directed to the Meadow Springs apartment complex. Officers were told the driver of the truck did not see which apartment Wood entered.
Officers began to check apartments and saw a hoodie of the type Wood had been wearing at the motel on a chair in front of one of the units.
The occupant allowed officers to come in and Wood was seen sitting in a chair. The man living in the apartment said he did not know Wood and that she had asked for shelter, after “giving him a domestic violence story.”
Wood was taken into custody at that point.
Officers searching the motel room located drug paraphernalia, including syringes containing a liquid field testing positive for methamphetamine.
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