Ferdinand pursuit ends after suspect crashes into Jasper road construction

A chase that began in Ferdinand ended in Jasper when the driver ran into the construction barricades on Wernsing Road in Jasper early Thursday morning.

Kyle A. Baumeister, 27, of Huntingburg, was charged with Level 6 felony resisting law enforcement and misdemeanor counts of aggressive driving, criminal mischief, criminal recklessness and reckless driving after he was captured in Jasper.

The pursuit began when a Ferdinand officer stopped the 2011 Honda Insight Baumeister was driving after clocking the southbound car going 70 mph in a 55 mph zone on State Road 162 south of Holiday Lake Road, police said.

Baumeister pulled into PJ’s Barbecue parking lot in Ferdinand but when the officer approached the vehicle, Baumeister accelerated out of the parking lot and headed north on State Road 162. The officer followed and notified officers in the area for assistance.

Indiana State Police, Dubois County Sheriff’s Department and Jasper Police Department responded and deployed stop sticks at the intersection of State Road 162 and 3rd Avenue. Baumeister continued north on State Road 162, allegedly reaching speeds of 100 mph, and ran the vehicle through the stop sticks. He continued into Jasper driving on the rims of the front tires.

According to police, he traveled through several Jasper streets disregarding traffic signals and stop signs attempting to evade police until eventually turning on Clay Street. While on Clay Street, Baumeister finally stopped after colliding with the construction barricades for the bridge work being done on Wernsing Road.

Police took Baumeister to Memorial Hospital and determined he had a .107 percent blood alcohol content. He was booked into the Dubois County Security Center.

A Uebelhor & Sons tow truck and Memorial Hospital Emergency Medical Services also assisted in the incident.