St. Maries man arrested following 17-mile chase

A St. Maries man was arrested Friday morning following a 17-mile, low-speed pursuit on Highway 3 that stretched from Benewah. County into Kootenai County.

According to the Idaho State Police, Lyle D. Osier, 73, was charged with eluding a peace officer, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, contempt of court and failure to have an ignition interlock device.

ISP said a trooper spotted a northbound Chevrolet pickup on Highway 3 shortly before 8 a.m. with tape obstructing both the front and rear license plates.

The trooper conducted a traffic stop and the driver of the pickup stopped at mile marker 88, just north of St. Maries. The driver refused to roll down the window, then drove off, ISP said.

"The trooper pursued the pickup continuing northbound on Highway 3 at speeds well below the limit," a press release said.

With the assistance of Benewah County deputies, spikes strips were laid down on the highway that disabled three of the pickup's four tires.

The pickup continued northbound at very slow speeds, ISP said. A second set of spike strips was deployed which disabled the fourth tire, but the driver continued on, dropping to speeds of less than 10 mph, the release said.

Deputies and troopers stopped traffic on Highway 3 while a trooper performed a pursuit intervention technique at mile marker 105 in Kootenai County, which safely stopped the pickup.

Troopers took the driver of the pickup into custody without further incident. He was booked into the Kootenai County jail.

During the slow-speed pursuit, the driver of the pickup had a mid-sized dog in the open bed of the truck. The dog was not hurt and was placed in safe custody following the driver's arrest.