Man Blows 16 Stop Signs, Asks Deputy For Cigarette: Report

RACINE, WI — Authorities in Racine County say they arrested a man who fled officers after a routine traffic stop, only to have the man they tracked down ask one of the deputies for a cigarette.

According to Racine County Sheriff's officials, Trevor Ottum, 21, Racine, was charged with 16 counts of bail jumping, possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting an officer and fleeing an officer. According to jail information posted online, Ottum is being held on $17,400 bail.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Racine County, Racine County sheriff's deputies were on patrol on Feb. 16 just after 7:30 p.m. in the area of 6th St. and N. Memorial Drive on Racine's south side when they checked the plates on a 2000 GMC Savanna that Ottum was driving, only to find out that Ottum had a suspended driver's license and an arrest warrant out in Milwaukee County for resisting an officer and possession of narcotics from an Oct. 31 case.

According to the complaint, Ottum saw that police were attempting a traffic stop on his vehicle, so he turned south onto Racine St. and then began to flee at a high rate of speed.

Police reported that over the course of the police chase, Ottum failed to stop at a total of 16 stop signs, ran one red light, traveled on the wrong side of the road for stretches and was speeding a majority of the time.

According to the Complaint, Ottum initially lost the pursuing deputies, only to have Racine police locate him driving at 16th St and Mead. Police managed to disable Ottum's vehicle, only to find that he fled on foot.

Police managed to track him down and arrest him just before 8 p.m. According to the criminal complaint, Ottum asked deputies several questions, including whether he could have his glasses, and how fast he may have been going.

According to the complaint, he asked a deputy if he could have a cigarette - to which the deputy replied he had none.

According to court documents online, Ottum was also cited for OWI-first offense, failure to stop at a stop sign, operating a vehicle without insurance, operating while suspended, reckless driving, unreasonable speed, violating a red traffic light, unsafe lane deviation, operating left of center line and failure to use a turn signal.

Image Via Racine County Jail