Wrong-way driver charged, had child in SUV
A 37-year-old woman from is accused of driving the wrong way on I-94 in Oak Creek on Saturday, Jan. 18 – and officials say she had a child in her SUV.
MILWAUKEE – A 37-year-old woman from Athens, Wisconsin is accused of driving the wrong way on I-94 in Oak Creek on Saturday, Jan. 18 – and officials say she had a child in her SUV.
The accused is Changlan Thunder, and she faces the following criminal counts:
- Second-degree recklessly endangering safety
- Resist officer-failure to stop vehicle
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Wrong-way driver accused
What we know:
According to the criminal complaint, a Milwaukee County sheriff’s deputy was dispatched on Saturday, Jan. 18 to the stretch of I-94 between Rawson and Drexel avenues regarding a wrong-way driver.
Wrong-way driver on I-94 in Oak Creek
A woman from north-central Wisconsin is accused of driving the wrong way on I-94 in Oak Creek with a child in her SUV
Numerous motorists had called 911 about a driver who had entered the Rawson Avenue off-ramp, traveled south against existing traffic and continued south on the shoulder of the northbound lanes of I-94.
The deputy located the vehicle which was then “being operated off-road in the grass” near the church near I-94 and Drexel Avenue. The deputy’s lights and siren were activated — and he ordered the driver to pull over. However, the driver did not stop, but rather re-entered Drexel Avenue and traveled east for a short distance before stopping.
When the deputy approached the vehicle, he determined that the defendant was the driver of the vehicle — and there was a 10-year-old child in the vehicle with her. The deputy noted the defendant “was generally not cooperative but was not intoxicated,” the complaint says.
Wisconsin Department of Transportation cameras captured the wrong-way driving incident. The cameras showed at one point, the defendant “appears to speak with a stopped civilian, then proceeds southbound in the northbound shoulder,” the complaint says.
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Thunder made her initial appearance in Milwaukee County court on Wednesday, Jan. 22. The court ordered a signature bond of $750.
What’s next:
Thunder is due back in court on Feb. 3 for a preliminary hearing.
The Source: The information in this post was provided by online court records and the criminal complaint associated with this case.