A 26-year-old Platte City man was booked inside the Platte County Detention Center after the vehicle he was driving allegedly almost struck a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper, who was assisting at a traffic stop along Interstate 29.
At about 2:30 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 30, the highway trooper was standing on the right shoulder of the northbound lanes of the interstate assisting a fellow trooper when he observed a maroon Scion whiz past him. Although the patrol vehicle’s siren was audible and the emergency lights were visible, the driver, later identified as Patrick David Hollingsworth, failed to slow down and move over, authorities allege.
“The Scion was within a few inches of striking me roadside as it traveled at a high rate of speed,” the trooper wrote in a probable cause statement.
According to court documents, the trooper attempted to pull the driver of the Scion over, but he refused to stop and attempted to flee at a high rate of speed while weaving in his lane. Police continued to follow the vehicle for 16 miles at speeds nearing 90 mph, court documents indicate.
Eventually, Hollingsworth came to a stop in the 10600 block of McLiney Lane in Platte City. The state trooper ordered Hollingsworth to show his hands, but he refused to comply with the trooper’s commands, according to court documents. The trooper deployed pepper spray, but Hollingsworth appeared unfazed by the lachrymatory agent, according to the allegations.
Platte County deputies arrived at the scene and deployed a police K-9 through the driver’s side window. Hollingsworth was then taken into custody without further incident.
Due to an alleged strong odor of intoxicants, slurred speech, and admission to drinking alcohol, Hollingsworth was placed under arrest for suspicion of driving while intoxicated, according to the probable cause statement.
According to court documents, Hollingsworth briefly complied with a field sobriety test at the jail but changed his mind once it got started.
The Platte County Prosecutor’s Office has charged Hollingsworth with the felony charge of resisting a lawful stop. He bonded out of jail earlier this week by posting a surety bond (10 percent) of $7,500. A condition of bond is that he cannot operate a motor vehicle, according to court records. His next court is scheduled for Oct. 13.
