News Release
Jasper County — An intoxicated driver who called 911 on herself was arrested early Sunday morning after Indiana State Police located her driving erratically and endangering motorists on Interstate 65 in Jasper County.
According to Indiana State Police, at 1:36 a.m. on Sunday, Police Dispatch received a 911 call from a woman later identified as Meisha Thomas, 42, of Chicago, who sounded highly intoxicated and was providing erratic information to dispatchers.
Dispatch tracked the caller’s location as she traveled southbound on Interstate 65 near the 240-mile marker in southern Lake County.
Trooper Haddon responded to the area and located a vehicle matching the caller’s location traveling between 30 and 50 mph in a posted 70 mph zone after she had left Lake County and entered Jasper County on I-65.
The vehicle was observed swerving across lanes, impeding traffic, and causing other motorists to brake and take evasive action. After initially failing to stop for emergency lights and siren, the driver eventually came to a stop in the left lane of the interstate.
The trooper made contact with the driver, identified as Thomas, and observed multiple signs of impairment, including slurred speech, bloodshot eyes, poor coordination, and a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage.
Thomas told the trooper she had left the casino in Gary and was traveling home to Chicago.
Investigators determined she had traveled approximately 36 miles in the wrong direction.
Due to her level of impairment, Thomas was unable to safely complete standardized field sobriety tests and later refused Indiana’s implied consent law. A search warrant was obtained for a blood draw, and a sample was collected at a local hospital.
Throughout the encounter, Thomas made repeated inappropriate sexual comments and physical advances toward the arresting trooper, including attempting to kiss him while he was securing her in a seatbelt.
Despite being instructed multiple times to stop, Thomas continued making kissing gestures, sounds, and suggestive remarks.
As a result of one of the incidents, she was additionally charged with battery against a public safety official.
Thomas was transported to the Jasper County Jail and is preliminarily charged with the following offenses:
- Battery Against a Public Safety Official Engaged in Official Duty (Level 6 Felony)
- Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated Endangering a Person (Class A Misdemeanor)
- Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated (Class C Misdemeanor)
- Reckless Driving (Class C Misdemeanor)
