BRISTOL — At half past midnight on April 11, a Bristol police officer tried to stop a vehicle for defective equipment, but the driver sped off southbound on Route 116 south of the village.
The officer pursued the vehicle onto River Road, where the vehicle went off the roadway. The driver was able to get the vehicle back onto the roadway and drove back toward Route 116, where it turned southbound.
The officer continued pursuit at speeds of over 100 miles per hour, according to a Bristol police report.
The vehicle then turned westbound onto Cobble Road.
As the vehicle approached East Munger Street, the driver lost control of the vehicle and rolled it into a ditch. A female passenger was ejected from the vehicle, and the male driver ran from the vehicle into the woods. The Bristol Rescue Squad transported the female to Porter Hospital, where she was treated for non-life threatening injuries.
Police later caught the driver at a farm on Munger Street, where they took him into custody and subsequently transported him to Porter.
The operator was identified as Zachariah Rusk, 21, of New Haven.
Rusk pleaded innocent in Addison Superior Court, criminal division, to charges of eluding a law enforcement officer, gross negligent driving, speeding and leaving the scene of a crash.
`Between April 9 and April 23, the Bristol Police Department conducted nine town-contracted traffic patrols, covering Burpee, Hardscrabble, Hewitt, Monkton, Rockydale and Stoney Hill roads. Officers issued six tickets and one warning for speeding, one ticket for an expired inspection sticker, and one warning for failure to possess a driver’s license. On the night of April 22, a motorist reported being followed from Buel’s Gore by a vehicle with Maine license plates, but police could not find a Maine-registered vehicle.
During that period Bristol police also conducted eight security checks at Mount Abraham Union High School. On April 10, 19 and 20, police secured doors left unlocked and notified the custodians. On April 10, police also secured two windows. No other issues were encountered. During these same weeks, police took fingerprints from four persons interesting in working/ volunteering within the Addison Northeast Supervisory Union.
In other recent action Bristol police:
•  Were advised on April 13 of repeated open container violations behind a West Street business during lunch hours.
•  Responded to an accidental alarm activation at the town office on April 13.
•  Ordered four vehicles towed from Main Street at 11:15 p.m. on April 13. The vehicles were blocking the street sweeper; police had placed notices on cars and in mailboxes on the 11th and 12th; and the parking ban lights were on.
•  On April 14 issued a no trespass notice on a Bristol man who reportedly had been repeatedly disruptive in the West Street Maplefields, allegedly using racial slurs and harassing an employee.
•  Captured a stray dog observed bothering a pedestrian walking his dog on Pleasant Street on April 14. Police identified the dog’s owner and returned it with a warning.
•  Took an April 14 call from the parent of an elementary-age child, who reported having problems with her child and indicated that she found the child unmanageable. Follow up is pending.
•  Responded to a report of an out-of-control student at MAUHS on April 14. Police found the student had been brought under control. He was ordered to leave campus for the day. Witnesses reported disorderly conduct by the student, who was later cited through his parent to appear in juvenile court.
•  On April 14 checked the welfare of an elementary student who had not been to school in some time. Police found that the family had moved from the area without notifying the school.
•  On April 14 investigated a bad check written by an Addison resident to the town of Bristol for a parking ticket. Court action is pending.
•  Did domestic violence training with Addison County Deputy State’s Attorney Rebecca Otey on April 14.
•  Contacted the owner of a wallet turned in to Bristol police on April 14.
•  Responded to Bristol Elementary School for a report of a juvenile disobeying parental and school staff requests on April 17. The officer assisted in getting the juvenile to a safe space for engagement by staff without incident.
•  Worked with MAUHS students on a community sexting-prevention project on April 17.
•  Worked out of Bristol Elementary on April 17.
•  Investigated a report that several juveniles were seen playing with knives at the Bristol Recreation Field on April 17. No one was found with a knife.
•  Met with a WCAX News reporter, Deputy State’s Attorney Ashley Hill and Addison County youth worker Pierre Cotton for a news piece on sexting on April 18, three days after the Addison Independent ran a piece on teen sexting, which is sending sexually explicit images through personal electronic devices. The officer then coordinated interviews with the student leadership group at MAUHS for the news story. The piece was aired on the evening news.
•  Worked out of Bristol Elementary School on April 18. The officer met with a staff member who reported an assault by a student and disorderly conduct by a parent. Police are following up.
•  Received a call on April 18 about a vehicle that was damaged while parked at Shaw’s on April 17. Police attempted to contact the person several times on April 18 and 19, but did not receive a call back.
•  Conducted several quarterly sex offender registry checks on April 18.
•  Completed an accident report on April 19 for a Starksboro man who said a hit and run crash had occurred on April 18.
•  Received a required U.S. Department of Justice report on April 19 from an area firearms dealer regarding multiple sales of pistols.
•  Investigated a banging noise reported coming from the side of 31 Main St. on April 20.
•  Tried, on April 20, to locate a person in connection with a fatal crash under investigation by the Vermont State Police, but learned that the person had moved.
•  Responded, on April 20, to a report of a stray dog near River Road but could not find the dog.
•  Worked out of Bristol Elementary on April 20 and met with the principal to discuss recent school threats and the school’s Crisis Plan review.
•  Assisted the Bristol Rescue Squad at a district residence where a man had fallen down the stairs on April 20.
•  Participated in training for emergency medical technicians at Bristol Rescue Squad headquarters on April 20. The training involved a mock motor vehicle crash. The Bristol officer provided trainees with feedback on their overall handling of the scenario.
•  Received a report that a pair of shoes had been stolen from the boys’ locker room at MAUHS on April 20. The investigation is ongoing.
•  Responded, on April 20, to an alarm at the American Legion building, but on arrival found the building to be secure.
•  Assisted the Bristol Fire Department on April 21 by controlling traffic on Route 116 near Cove Road, while the fire department battled an active structure fire.
•  Investigated a call about a vandalized truck at the Kountry Trailer Park on April 22.
•  Assisted state police locate a reported possibly impaired driver travelling east on Route 17 toward Bristol on April 22. The Bristol officer located the vehicle as it approached Daniels Four Corners and stopped it on Stoney Hill Road, and found the driver unimpaired.
•  Tried to locate, on April 22, the owner of a debit card left in the police department drop box at the front door. A note attached to the debit card said it was left at the bank by someone in a Toyota sedan. Police returned the card to the bank.
•  Received a report, on April 23, from a Main Street resident who observed several beer bottles broken on the sidewalk near Hatch 31. A second call notified police that the bottles had been picked up. Police found nothing of concern in the area.