Cops: Woman Stole Cruiser, Fled at 80mph—in Cuffs

Roxanne Rimer really, really, really did not want to be arrested
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jan 27, 2015 2:05 PM CST
Cops: Woman Stole Cruiser, Fled at 80mph—in Cuffs
Roxanne Rimer was pretty dogged in her attempts to evade arrest, police say.   (Shutterstock)

A Pennsylvania woman will stand trial on charges she stole a police cruiser and led officers on an 80mph chase—all while her hands were cuffed behind her. Center Township police testified at Roxanne Rimer's hearing yesterday that she was arrested after stealing earrings from a Kohl's store Jan. 14. Police testified that a loss prevention officer detained Rimer, 27, who gave a fake name and claimed to be a juvenile. Before police could arrive, Rimer ran away and jumped into a car driven by her grandfather, police said. That car was pulled over moments later, and Rimer was cuffed and placed in the back of a police cruiser, screaming, "Mommy! Mommy!" authorities said. Officers say while police searched her grandfather's car, the thin woman squeezed through a partition in the cruiser and into the front seat. She zoomed off, smashing into her grandfather's car as she drove away, police said.

Which leads us to this quote, from the local police chief, as per WPXI: "With her back turned and her hands cuffed behind her back, she manages to put it in gear and drive. And from what we can gather, she drove at very high speeds with that position somehow manipulating the gears and steering the wheel." After a 10-mile chase, she crashed into a hillside and jumped out, police said. She faces charges including aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, fleeing and eluding police, and robbery. Her attorney argued against the aggravated assault charge—filed because the officers were endangered—because he said Rimer didn't intend to injure anyone and nobody was hurt. But the judge agreed with the prosecutor, who said Rimer put both the police and her grandfather at risk. "She was going to get out of that situation at whatever the cost," says an assistant DA. (More weird crimes stories.)

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