
IDAHO FALLS — A 22-year-old Blackfoot man is facing charges after allegedly driving away from police when he was stopped and trying to escape from the hospital with handcuffs still on him.
According to an affidavit of probable cause filed by the Idaho Falls Police Department, on April 8 at 5:30 a.m., an officer saw a gray Cadillac driving at least 20 mph over the speed limit on Memorial Drive.
The officer activated overhead emergency lights and attempted to catch up to the vehicle.
It turned into a gas station parking lot on Broadway and stopped. The officer went over to the driver, later identified as Gentry Loveland, and he let off the brake. The vehicle started to coast forward a few inches before stopping again.
The officer ordered Loveland to put his hands out of the window. He complied momentarily and then shifted the vehicle into drive and sped out of the parking lot, court documents said.
Loveland turned the wrong way onto the northbound I-15 off-ramp into oncoming traffic. The vehicle then lost control and crashed into a fence along the off-ramp, damaging property.
The officer got to the crash, where Loveland came out of the vehicle and started to run.
“As I exited my vehicle, I held Gentry at gunpoint and began issuing him commands to show his hands and get on the ground,” the officer wrote in court documents.
Other officers arrived, and Loveland was put into handcuffs.
Loveland was belligerent and immediately began saying profane names, court documents said, adding he screamed, yelled and was very irritable.
His behavior was consistent with someone under the influence, documents said.
While on the scene, a K9 conducted a search. A piece of folded wax paper containing a brown substance was located. Officers found it to be consistent with THC wax manufactured from marijuana.
When they searched the vehicle, officers also found two THC vapes and a Mason jar with a brown waxy substance.
Due to the circumstances, the officer could not safely conduct a standardized field sobriety test, and Loveland refused to consent to a blood sample, documents said.
Loveland was taken to a local hospital for a blood draw search warrant before going to jail.
While the officer was waiting outside the hospital, Loveland allegedly tried to escape the emergency room.
A detective was standing outside of the room when Loveland ran out and down the hallway while still in handcuffs, police said. The detective and other emergency room staff caught him and prevented his escape.
He was then transported to the Bonneville County jail.
Loveland was charged with felony eluding a police officer, misdemeanor driving under the influence, misdemeanor resisting arrest, misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance, and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia.
He was given a $30,000 bond and has since posted it. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on April 21 at 1 p.m. at the Bonneville County Courthouse.