JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — Two Wyoming residents with long rap sheets are in custody following a pursuit on Tuesday, March 15.
The pursuit started shortly after 4:32pm after Wyoming Highway Patrol (WHP) Troopers were notified of a vehicle headed south on Interstate 25 with an occupant who had an active warrant for kidnapping. A WHP Trooper located the car on US 26 west of Guernsey. The trooper attempted to stop the vehicle but the driver failed to yield.
The driver of the vehicle fled east into the town of Guernsey before changing directions to head west on Highway 26. While troopers pursued the vehicle west on Highway 26, the driver attempted to drive into pursuing units and oncoming traffic.
Around Milepost 5 on US 26, a collision occurred between the suspect vehicle and a Wyoming Highway Patrol vehicle. The crash disabled the suspect’s vehicle. The occupants of the car fled on foot towards an adjacent farmhouse. Law enforcement chased the suspects towards the farmhouse but could not apprehend them before they gained access to a Ford F-250. The suspects eluded law enforcement by fleeing in the Ford south through adjacent fields, driving off-road and out of sight. A perimeter was established in the area to locate the truck.
A little after 7:00pm, law enforcement located the Ford abandoned in a ravine. The occupants were observed fleeing on foot towards Gray Rocks Road. Due to the adverse road conditions, local agencies provided off-road vehicles to help search the area for the suspects. Around 10:12pm, a suspect was located near the creek hiding under tumbleweeds and taken into custody. The second suspect was found Wednesday morning near the Basin Electric Power Coop north of Wheatland and was taken into custody without further incident.
The occupants have been identified as 26-year-old Joshua Taylor and 25-year-old Jeromie B. Ballinger, both of Wyoming. Taylor was booked into the Platte County Detention Center on the active felony warrant. Charges are pending on Ballinger.
The WHP would like to thank the following agencies for their assistance with this incident: Platte County Sheriff’s Department, Goshen County Sheriff’s Department, Guernsey Police Department, Wheatland Police Department, Wyoming State Parks, Wyoming Game and Fish, Torrington, and local fire departments, Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, Wyoming Homeland Security, and all the residents who assisted with information on local terrain.
