St. Joseph – Shortly after 10:00 a.m. today what started as a routine traffic stop ended minutes later after a subject fled from the state police and crashed his truck at the intersection of SR 23 and Crooked Oak in Granger.

Senior Trooper Jim Zeser was patrolling Granger when he stopped the driver of a maroon 1995 Chevrolet pickup truck for a vehicle registration violation.  The driver of the truck, Ryan Shenefield, 32, of Bristol, pulled into the parking lot behind McDonalds on SR 23.  Shenefield identified himself to Trooper Zeser with an ID card and stated that he was suspended.  Trooper Zeser returned to his police vehicle only to watch Shenefield speed away.  Shenefield fled east through the parking lot and then turned east onto SR 23.  Trooper Zeser chased Shenefield as he continued east bound past Bittersweet Rd.  Zeser commented that Shenefield was attempting to illegally pass another pickup truck on the right shoulder when they collided.  The impact sent Shenefield’s pickup off the south side of the road where it struck a utility pole, a large tree and demolished a stone sign marking the entrance to Oak Ridge Subdivision before coming to a rest on its side.

Shenefield was removed from the pickup by emergency personnel and then transported to St. Joseph Hospital in Mishawaka.  He was treated for minor injuries at the hospital before being released and subsequently arrested and taken to the St. Joseph County Jail by Trooper Zeser.  The driver of the other vehicle, Joseph Johnson, 45, of Niles was not injured in the crash and his truck sustained only minor damage.

Shenefield was arrested on charges of resisting law enforcement with a vehicle, operating while intoxicated refusal, driving as a habitual traffic violator, and possession of stolen property.  It was discovered that the license plate that Shenefield had on his pickup had been reported stolen off a car.  All four of the charges are class D felonies.