Northeast Iowa Police Officer Injured by Wrong Way Driver Who Was Drunk

A northeast Iowa police officer, injured when his squad car was hit by a wrong way driver, has been identified.

The Iowa State Patrol says the collision occurred in Bremer County shortly before 8:30 pm Wednesday night near the intersection of US Highway 63 and 260th Street.  52-year-old Denver Police Officer Timothy Jennings was notified of a driver heading north in the southbound lanes of Highway 63.

The State Patrol says Jennings located the wrong way vehicle and stopped, but his patrol car was then hit at slow speed by the wrong way driver’s truck, who then backed up and put the vehicle in the ditch. 

The driver has been identified as 52-year-old Sheri Kirkpatrick of New Hartford, who has been charged with OWI. According to the criminal complaint,  inside the truck were two bottles of Smirnoff brand vodka and she declined to provide a breath sample. 

Kirkpatrick is also accused of becoming belligerent and tried to hit Jennings as well as first responders.