Drivers face felony charges for leading cops on chases

Two men accused of leading authorities on separate high-speed chases that began in Belgium this summer now face felonies in Ozaukee County Circuit Court.

Sheboygan resident John I. Timmer, 36, who at one point during a chase in August drove the wrong way on Highway 57 in a desperate attempt to elude officers, then after being stopped struggled with them, was charged last week with second-degree recklessly endangering safety, attempting to flee officers and a misdemeanor count of resisting or obstructing an officer, according to a criminal complaint.

The chase extended into Sheboygan County, where Timmer faces the same charges as well as a count of child enticement and has been held in jail there in lieu of $500,000 bail since his arrest.

The Friday, Aug. 16, chase began after an Ozaukee County sheriff’s deputy who was dispatched to help find a Chevy Silverado pickup truck that had been driving south in the northbound lanes of I-43 at more than 100 mph spotted the truck at the intersection of Hickory Grove and Kay-K roads in the Town of Belgium at 4:23 a.m.

The deputy activated his vehicle’s emergency lights and siren in an attempt to stop the driver of the truck, who had already been identified as Timmer, according to the complaint filed in Ozaukee County Circuit Court.

Timmer made hand signals out the window of his truck and continued driving south, then east through Holy Cross. He then doubled back and headed north on Highway 57.

In Sheboygan County, Timmer hit tire spikes deployed by deputies but didn’t stop. With his tires beginning to shred and his truck becoming uncontrollable, Timmer drove through tall grass in the median, then headed north in the southbound lanes of Highway 57, according to the complaint.

A PIT maneuver — a tactic in which a squad car makes contact with a fleeing vehicle in an effort to turn the vehicle sideand  and stop it — was unsuccessful, but a second one brought Timmer’s truck to a stop.

Timmer, who ran from his truck, was tackled by a deputy and began wrestling with him. Deputies from both Ozaukee and Sheboygan counties tried unsuccessfully to handcuff him, with one deputy eventually delivering two knee strikes to Timmer, who was handcuffed and arrested, the complaint states.

According to court records, Timmer was convicted of first-degree sexual assault of a child in 2013 and sentenced to three years in prison and seven years of extended supervision.

In a separate case filed last week, Robert W. Williams, who is accused of racing through northern Ozaukee County at more than 100 mph after he was seen beating a woman in Belgium, is charged with second-degree recklessly endangering safety, fleeing an officer and two counts of bail jumping, all felonies.

According to the complaint filed in that case, an Ozaukee County sheriff’s deputy was dispatched to Kwik Trip in Belgium at 4 p.m. Friday, July 26, for a report of a man later identified as Williams beating a woman outside the store.

By the time the deputy arrived, Williams and the woman had left, but surveillance video showed Williams, a 47-year-old Sheboygan resident, cornering the woman, pulling her to the ground by her hair and kicking her in the torso. After an unidentified person approached them, Williams and the woman ran to a gold Chrysler 300 and drove away, the complaint states.

The car’s license plate was traced to Williams, who was wanted in Sheboygan County for failing to appear for a court appearance in a felony case. As a condition of his bail, Williams was ordered not to have contact with the woman he was seen beating, according to the complaint.

The deputy could not immediately find the Chrysler, but at 7:52 p.m. he spotted it at the Kwik Trip again.

As Williams drove out of the parking lot, the deputy pulled him over near Main Street and Highway LL in Belgium.

Williams got out of the car, but when the deputy, who saw there was a passenger in his car, asked him to walk to his patrol vehicle, Williams said no, got into his car and sped west on Main Street, according to the complaint.

Traveling at 60 to 80 mph, Williams made his way to Highway 57, where he accelerated to 115 mph.

Sheboygan County deputies attempted to assist but could not get in front of Williams. The chase, which covered 10 miles, was stopped because of safety concerns.

At the time, Williams was free in lieu of $2,000 bail on a felony charge filed in Sheboygan County Circuit Court of possession of a firearm by an out-of-state felon. He pleaded no contest to that charge last month and was sentenced to three years in prison and three years of extended supervision.

He was also free at the time on bail jumping and battery charges filed in Sheboygan County. He pleaded no contest to the battery charge last month and was sentenced to six months in jail. The felony bail jumping charge as well as a second count of battery were dismissed.