A Clintonville man who backed his pickup truck into a squad car now faces a felony drunken-driving charge.
James H. Bartz, 49, was charged with a fourth offense of operating while intoxicated and with obstructing an officer.
At approximately 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 10, Clintonville police received an anonymous tip that Bartz was intoxicated and leaving Philagain’s Island Bar in a red pickup truck.
Officer Adam Miller later observed a red truck drift across the center line and made a traffic stop.
As he walked toward the truck from his squad car, Miller noticed that the brake lights become dim and the vehicle began rolling backwards.
Miller yelled at the driver to hit his brakes, but the truck continued rolling until it banged into the squad car.
Miller then pulled the truck door open, made sure the transmission was in park, and ordered the driver, identified as Bartz, to exit the truck.
Bartz initially refused to leave the vehicle, according to the criminal complaint.
When Miller asked Bartz if he saw what he just did, he reportedly replied, “I didn’t do anything.”
When a Marion officer arrived at the scene to do an accident report regarding the Clintonville squad car, he asked Bartz for the name of his insurance company. Bartz replied, “It’s none of your business,” the complaint says.
As Bartz became increasingly uncooperative, other officers were called to the scene to assist.
Later, after Bartz was transported to Riverside Medical Center in Waupaca, three officers held him down so that the med tech could draw his blood.