Alleged assault with screwdriver leads to high-speed chase into Illinois

A Friday-morning high-speed chase from Jackson to Highway 3 in Illinois started when a man attempted to assault a Jackson resident with a screwdriver, said Jackson police chief James Humphreys.

Jackson police began looking for Jeramie D. Oakley, 30, of West Frankfort, Ill., Thursday after a warrant was issued for harassment, charges that appeared to stem from a "lover's quarrel" of some kind, Humphreys said.

According to a probable-cause statement by officer James Barker, Oakley threatened to kill the victim, whom he considered to be his romantic rival, over a series of harassing phone calls, saying there would "be a noose around his neck by dark."

During the last phone call, he said that he was crossing the bridge into Missouri and they "needed a bulletproof vest because he was going to fill them full of holes by dark."

Police were unable to locate the suspect but received a call Friday morning alerting them that he had returned to the home of the people he'd allegedly been harassing and "had basically attempted to kill them with a screwdriver," Humphreys said.

Police began patrolling the area around Neal Street in Jackson and spotted Oakley driving a green minivan. When officers attempted a stop, he kept going, and the pursuit was on, Humphreys said.

Oakley drove toward East Main Street, at one point attempting to "T-bone" a Jackson officer, and hopped on Interstate 55 at Center Junction, heading south to Cape Girardeau where he took the Highway 74 exit, Humphreys said.

Once the fleeing suspect got on the interstate, Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers lined up ready to take over the chase, Humphreys said.

The chase continued east on Highway 74 toward the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge, where Cape Girardeau police and highway patrol officers had set up spike strips to puncture the van's tires.

The tires blew, but Oakley drove over the bridge on flat tires and riding mostly on the rims, Humphreys said.

He went north on Highway 3 in Illinois, where he finally surrendered to Illinois State Police without a fight, Humphreys said.

Cape Girardeau County authorities will apply to have him extradited to Missouri, where a $10,000 cash-only bond has already been set for the original harassment charges.

Jackson police will apply for additional charges

related to Friday morning's alleged attempted assault, alleged assault on a law enforcement officer and allegedly resisting arrest, Humphreys said.

No charges had been filed as of Friday afternoon because Oakley was still in the custody of Illinois authorities, but charges may be filed over the weekend, said Cape Girardeau associate prosecuting attorney Angel Woodruff.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

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