A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A 47-year-old Cloquet woman was awaiting charges in Pine County Jail after striking multiple vehicles and leading authorities on a high-speed pursuit Tuesday that was terminated by the State Patrol and later picked up by deputies from two counties.
Jennie Elizabeth Birkholz was set to be charged with fleeing a police officer on Thursday in Tenth District Court in Pine City. The charge is punishable by up to three years in jail and a $5,000 fine.
It’s unclear if further charges are coming, but the criminal complaint filed with district court suggests additional crimes.
The complaint described Birkholz traveling in a stolen black Chevrolet Silverado. Minnesota State Patrol first encountered her following up on a report of a driving complaint in the area of southbound Interstate 35 near mile marker 234 near Cloquet.
“The vehicle fled from the trooper and hit several vehicles along the way,” MSP’s Lt. Mike Lee said in an email. “There were no injuries reported with the crashes. Ultimately, the trooper discontinued the pursuit and the vehicle continued southbound.”
The State Patrol will be investigating three total crashes, Lee added.
The pursuit was joined by Carlton County Sheriff’s Office deputies at mile marker 230 for several miles, then terminated by the State Patrol and Carlton County at mile marker 224. Roughly 20 miles later, Carlton County deputies caught up with Birkholz; she was “traveling at speeds of approximately 110 mph,” the complaint said.
Pine County Sheriff’s Office deputies successfully deployed stop sticks at mile marker 205, reducing the speed of the vehicle, which then crashed into a ditch 2 miles later. “The driver was given numerous commands to exit the vehicle,” the complaint said.
The registered owner of the vehicle told the Pine County Sheriff’s Office her son was the primary user of the vehicle and Birkholz was an ex-girlfriend to the son. The owner claimed Birkholz stole the truck from a Holiday gas station in Duluth. Birkholz has a long history of criminal convictions.
