By Andy Furillo
afurillo@sacbee.com
South Lake Tahoe police arrested a heavy equipment operator Sunday night on suspicion of driving under the influence and other charges after he turned his front end loader on an officer's car and tried to ram it, according to a press release.
Steve Beattie, 55, was taken into custody after the 9 p.m. confrontation with officers that came to a conclusion on dead-end Terry Lane. He was booked on charges of drunken driving, assault with a deadly weapon on an officer and felony evasion of officers, the press release said.
Police said they responded to a call of a snow-removal tractor knocking over a light standard and traffic control signs on Ski Run Boulevard. They said that when officers tried to stop the vehicle, the driver refused to stop, then flipped them the middle finger and drove his vehicle toward a police car driven by Officer Ray Poole.
The officer was able to back up his car and avoid getting rammed by the front end loader, the police press release said. It said that Beattie eventually brought the front end loader to a stop on Terry Lane but that officers had to take him to the ground forcibly to get him to comply.
Beattie's blood was tested for its alcohol level, although no result was available today. The press release said that Beattie admitted to also using drugs and that he said he had been "conducting snow removal operations without sleep for several consecutive days."
Call The Bee's Andy Furillo, (916) 321-1141.
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "report abuse" button below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.