Woman sentenced in high-speed chase
The Rollins woman who led officers on a high-speed chase that ended in a head-on collision was sentenced during a hearing Thursday afternoon.
Emily Woodman, 28, was sentenced during a hearing in Flathead County District Court to 10 years in the Montana Department of Corrections with five of those years suspended and six months in the Flathead County Detention Center, to run concurrent and suspended, for a felony charge of criminal endangerment and a misdemeanor DUI, respectively. The charges stemmed from Woodman’s admission of fleeing from law officers during a late-night chase on U.S. 2 through Kalispell on Jan. 6.
She pleaded guilty to the offenses May 6.
During Thursday’s hearing, Woodman read a statement, apologizing to her family, law officers and the community for the fear the incident created and the harm that could have been done.
“I’m someone who has had a problem with alcohol and drugs for years,” she said, “I am lucky to be getting the help I need and I am so grateful.”
Woodman’s defense attorney, Brent Getty, told the court Woodman has wanted treatment “more than anything.”
District Judge Steward Stadler followed the sentencing recommendation outlined in the plea agreement, in which prosecutors dropped charges of criminal endangerment, criminal mischief and eluding a peace officer.
The night of the incident, Woodman had a blood alcohol concentration of .16 as she fled from law officers during a late-night chase on U.S. 2 through Kalispell on Jan. 6, evading multiple attempts to stop her speeding Chevy Blazer by driving around blockades and spike strips and colliding with law-enforcement vehicles.
The chase ended with a head-on collision between Woodman’s Blazer and a Ford Expedition driven by Sgt. Jim Browder of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office. Woodman was taken into custody around 1 a.m. Jan. 7.
Neither Browder nor Woodman sustained major injuries.
The Expedition sustained $14,000 in damage. Another county patrol vehicle sustained $3,500 worth of damage.