MERRILL – A 35-year-old man is facing his fifth drunken driving charge after leading police on a foot chase in Merrill.
Jeffrey S. Stricklin appeared on the felony charge Friday in Lincoln County Circuit Court, where Circuit Judge Jay Tlusty ordered him held on a $2,500 bond, the first $500 of which must be paid in cash.
According to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department, a deputy on patrol initially made contact with the man, who was seated inside of a vehicle in the parking lot of a tavern in the town of Merrill. A short time later, the vehicle was spotted driving into the city of Merrill.
Police say Stricklin parked the vehicle and fled on foot, but officers found him hiding in a group of bushes. He was arrested after undergoing field sobriety tests.
Stricklin was last convicted of felony drunken driving in 2013, when Judge Tlusty sentenced him to two years of probation and six months in jail. He was subject to an ignition interlock device until May 2016, court records show.
A scheduling hearing is set for Dec. 14.
