By Dawn Schuett
schuett@postbulletin.com
Charges are pending against two men who allegedly left the scene of an accident before one of them assaulted an off-duty reserve deputy.
According to Rochester Police Capt. Jim Pittenger, officers responded about 4 p.m. Thursday to a report of two vehicles racing in the 1300 block of Marion Road. One or both of the vehicles struck a flatbed truck, Pittenger said, and then one of the vehicles left the scene of the accident.
A few minutes later, police received a call about a pickup driving through an oats field along the 3800 block of 30th Street Southeast. An off-duty sheriff's reserve deputy driving his personal vehicle along U.S. 52 observed a pickup drive through a fence near 36th Avenue Southeast and cross the lanes of the highway.
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The vehicle became stuck in a ditch and the reserve deputy stopped at the scene, Pittenger said. The two occupants of the truck got out of the vehicle and tried to leave. The reserve deputy identified himself as a law enforcement officer to the men and told them to stay put, Pittenger said.
As the reserve deputy tried to prevent the vehicle's passenger from leaving, the 22-year-old Stewartville man allegedly punched the deputy in the face, Pittenger said.
The deputy was not seriously injured.
Officers arrested both occupants of the vehicle. Fourth-degree assault and disorderly conduct charges are pending against the passenger, Pittenger said. The 23-year-old driver, also from Stewartville, might face charges for reckless driving, leaving the scene of an accident, driving under the influence of alcohol, driving with a blood-alcohol concentration greater than 0.10 percent and driving after revocation.
