(Kenosha County Sheriff)
SALEM LAKES, Wis. — A Kenosha County man is facing serious felony charges after authorities say he led a sheriff’s deputy on a high-speed chase through a school zone before locking himself in a vehicle in Illinois and smoking what appeared to be crack cocaine during a tense standoff with police.
Patrick L. Rush, 46, of Trevor, was formally charged Monday in Kenosha County Circuit Court with one count of fleeing or eluding an officer and one count of first-degree recklessly endangering safety. Both charges are felonies, and the latter carries a maximum penalty of 12.5 years in prison. The court set Rush’s cash bail at $40,000. He is scheduled to return for a preliminary hearing on May 23.
According to a criminal complaint filed by the Kenosha County District Attorney’s Office, the case began on the morning of May 2 when a man named Joseph Himes called 911 to report a black Dodge Dakota driving recklessly near County Highway SA and 256th Avenue in the Village of Salem Lakes. Himes told dispatchers the truck had nearly struck him head-on and was swerving erratically.
Sheriff’s Deputy N. Calabrese responded to the area and quickly located the Dodge Dakota, registered to Rush, traveling eastbound on State Highway 50. The deputy attempted to get behind the vehicle but was initially delayed due to traffic. Calabrese caught up again when the truck turned south onto State Highway 83. Once behind the vehicle, the deputy activated his emergency lights and made multiple announcements over his PA system for the driver to pull over.
Instead of stopping, the driver — who Calabrese later identified as Rush — accelerated, even as the pursuit entered a posted 25-mph school zone near Salem Grade School. According to the complaint, Rush was traveling at approximately 42 mph in the school zone before turning west onto CTH-SA and speeding up dramatically.
Deputy Calabrese reported the truck hit speeds of 86 mph in a 45-mph zone as it continued northwest on Camp Lake Road. Due to the extreme speeds and the risk to public safety, the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department command staff ordered the pursuit to be terminated.
Investigators later used a FLOCK camera system — a network of automated license plate readers — to track the truck into Illinois. Surveillance showed the Dodge Dakota traveling east on Talman Avenue near Illinois Route 173 around 9:18 a.m., and again heading north near Cedar Lake Road and Rollins Road at 10:24 a.m.
Shortly after 11:30 a.m., Round Lake Beach police located the suspect vehicle. According to the complaint, Rush had locked himself inside the truck and was seen smoking what officers believed to be crack cocaine. When officers moved in, Rush allegedly resisted arrest, fought with officers, and was ultimately tased before being taken into custody.
He was transported to Condell Hospital in Libertyville, Illinois, for evaluation. Deputy Calabrese later interviewed Rush at the hospital, but Rush reportedly claimed he had no memory of the pursuit that occurred earlier that morning in Kenosha County.
The charges against Rush include:
- Fleeing or Eluding an Officer: A Class H felony punishable by up to six years in prison and a $10,000 fine. A conviction would also trigger a mandatory six-month revocation of his driver’s license.
- First-Degree Recklessly Endangering Safety: A Class F felony punishable by up to 12 years and six months in prison and a $25,000 fine.
Rush has prior criminal history, and his actions during the pursuit and arrest — including driving at dangerous speeds through a school zone and smoking suspected drugs while barricaded in a vehicle — could weigh heavily against him in future proceedings.
He remains in custody pending his next court appearance.
7 Responses
We all deserve to be compensated for our hard work including Kevin.
Can’t find much if any local news in our local rag and almost zero on the criminal aspect.
Keep up the good work Kevin 👍🏻
Rush further commented; well I knew I was going to the slammer again , so I smoked up the little crack I had left.
… I don’t know how Kevin can do as much as he does as one person.
That said, if you don’t want to read these stories, don’t pay. Even at that, why are you here ??
Because NOBODY ELSE is doing this !!
Not even the Kenosha News online. Nobody !
I am a subscriber of Fox News online. No charge there because of ALL the Adds.
I’m also a subscriber of The Blaze. Founded by Glen Beck. I pay there. It’s nominal but still cost.
This is the way of the world.
Step up or step out. Your choice
Deport Him!
And Illinois never bothered to arrest or charge him.