Lake County Gazette

Lake County Sheriff's deputies arrested a Gurnee man on Sept. 19 after he allegedly drove more than 50 mph over the speed limit and fled from law enforcement.

According to a Lake County Sheriff's Office news release, deputies were conducting speed enforcement near Route 41 and Wadsworth Road in Wadsworth at approximately 10:15 p.m. on Sept. 19 when they observed a Ford pickup truck traveling southbound at a high speed. The truck was clocked at 104 mph in a 50-mph zone.

The news release said that during a traffic stop, deputies identified the driver as Austin M. Williams, 47, of the 5100 block of Red Pine Ave., Gurnee. A deputy instructed him to exit his vehicle, but Williams allegedly fled in his pickup truck. The deputy lost sight of the vehicle as it fled westbound on Stearns School Road in Gurnee.

Area police departments were alerted to the incident, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office news release. Gurnee Police officers found the pickup truck at approximately 11:10 p.m. near Red Pine Avenue and Alpine Court in Gurnee. It was unoccupied. Deputies responded and requested a tow truck for the vehicle. As the tow truck arrived, a juvenile approached on foot, claiming ownership of the vehicle and denying its involvement in any incident. When the juvenile refused to leave and go home, he was taken into custody.

Soon after the juvenile was taken into custody, Williams approached the scene on foot, appearing agitated and demanding the juvenile's release, according to the news release. He allegedly walked toward the scene with his fist clenched and was told by deputies to stop. A deputy grabbed his arm, but Williams aggressively pulled away and continued toward the scene. Deputies used a Taser to subdue him and took him into custody.

Williams was taken to the Lake County Jail and charged with six misdemeanors: resisting a peace officer, obstructing a peace officer, reckless driving, aggravated speeding (104 mph in a 50-mph zone), speeding in a construction zone, and fleeing and eluding. He was processed and released; his next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 6. Defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.