Charges: Driver Hit State Trooper While Fleeing Rochester-Area Traffic Stop

Oronoco, MN (KROC-AM News)- Law enforcement found and arrested a Twin Cities woman accused of fleeing a traffic stop near Rochester. 

See Also: Driver Flees After Smashing Into Zumbrota Home, Help Saught 

The criminal complaint, filed in Olmsted County Court on Wednesday, says the alleged fleeing incident occurred shortly after 1:30 on Tuesday morning. 

A Minnesota State Patrol Trooper who initiated the traffic stop was clipped by the vehicle as it pulled away, the court document alleges. 

Impaired Woman Accused of Fleeing Hwy. 52 Traffic Stop, Clipping State Trooper As She Sped Away

The charges say a trooper stopped a vehicle seen weaving between lane lines and changing speeds on Hwy. 52 in Oronoco. 

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Once the driver partially rolled down the vehicle’s window, the trooper detected the odor of alcohol and marijuana coming from the vehicle, according to the court document. 

48-year-old Rachelle Lynn Carter was later identified as the driver. The charges say the Hopkins woman was displaying signs of impairment and that a preliminary breath test measured her blood alcohol concentration at 0.09. 

Carter then sped away from the scene of the traffic stop after the trooper told her she was under arrest. The trooper was hit by the pillar connecting the vehicle’s roof to its frame as Carter pulled away, the complaint says. 

The trooper, who the complaint indicates was not injured, began to pursue after informing dispatch that Carter fled, but discontinued the effort to chase her down as he still had her driver’s license, the court document says. 

A little over an hour after the traffic stop, the Goodhue County Sheriff’s Office informed the trooper that they had Carter in custody. 

A DataMaster test, performed at 4:30 Tuesday morning, measured Carter’s blood-alcohol concentration at 0.03. Court records indicate Carter was convicted of DWI twice in 2017. 

Carter is charged with felony fleeing, gross misdemeanor DWI and misdemeanor obstruction. She was released without bail following her first appearance in Olmsted County Court on Wednesday and is due back in court later this month.