A pre-trial hearing will be held July 28 for a woman who drove a stolen vehicle to the Faribault County Law Enforcement Center in Blue Earth and was arrested.
Cheryl Denise Racine Hernandez, 35, Fairmont, has been charged with theft-receiving stolen property with a value of $1,001 to $5,000, which is a felony and carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
She also faces three misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct, fifth-degree assault and obstruct legal process-interfere with a peace officer. All counts have a maximum sentence of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
According to a criminal complaint, deputy Jacob Pettit left the Sheriff’s Office to make a phone call at 10:30 p.m.
Pettit heard honking and two voices yelling as he walked toward his squad car and saw Jeremia Michael Roberts standing next to the passenger side of a car.
Court documents say that Hernandez was in the driver’s seat of the car when she put the vehicle in reverse and either struck Roberts or came dangerously close to hitting him.
Hernandez then drove down a dead road behind the building and Pettit sought the assistance of deputy Brittney Gehrking to stop her.
Gehrking called for assistance when Hernandez refused to give her name.
When Pettit arrived he saw Gehrking and Winnebago police officer Jacob Kral take Hernandez out of the car to the ground, handcuff and escort her to the jail.
Roberts told authorities that Hernandez picked him up earlier in the evening of April 1 and they began to argue. The complaint does not say why the two were outside the law enforcement center.
Authorities towed the car and were notified the next day by Spencer, Iowa, police officer Tom Bauler that the vehicle was reported stolen.
The owner of the vehicle left it running while they went into a business, says the complaint, and when they returned it was missing.