Crime Blotter: Old Woman Leads Car Chase

Dec. 2, 2004 -- -- An old lady never speeds in Idaho but allegedly leads police on a car chase; a son's prank on his mother goes to pot; and five men allegedly steal a mechanical deer. It's the Christmas shopping season and time for another edition of "The Crime Blotter."

BONNERS FERRY, Idaho -- A little old lady from New York faces charges for allegedly leading Idaho police on a car chase that didn't involve speeding.

Bonner County police say Nita Friedman, 66, led police on a car chase through two counties, driving at or under the speed limit for 15 miles. The pursuit started in Bonner County after police chief Mike Hutter got reports of a reckless driver.

Hutter said when he came upon Friedman, he flipped on his lights and siren, but it looked like she was about to pull over. However, Friedman allegedly veered back on the roadway and sped up to between 50 mph and 60 mph.

Hutter admits Friedman never sped during the chase and even stopped behind a left-turning vehicle but he asked Idaho State Police to put a spike strip in the roadway on U.S. Highway 95. When Friedman reached the spike strip, she drove over it, stopped momentarily and then started driving again. Three of Friedman's tires were flattened, preventing her from getting far.

Friedman was charged with eluding police and reckless driving and jailed on $600 bail.

LA VISTA, Neb. -- A Nebraska man got more than what he bargained for when a prank he played on his mother at her job went up in smoke.

Police say a 22-year-old man walked into a gas station on Nov. 28 and told the clerk -- his mother -- that he had a gun and was about to rob her. The man's mother wasn't alarmed but a customer unaware of the joke called police.

When authorities arrived at the gas station, they found the man and his friend in the parking lot, and they smelled marijuana. Police searched the men, found a quarter-pound of pot and hundreds of dollars of cash and arrested them for drug possession.