Woman faces charges after high-speed chase in Orange

A Stafford County woman is facing multiple charges following a high-speed car chase in Orange County.

Just before 9 a.m Thursday, an Orange County deputy attempted to stop a gray Pontiac for reckless driving near the State Route 20/U.S. 522 intersection. According to a news release from the Sheriff’s Office, the vehicle slowed as if it was coming to a stop, then sped off.

Sheriff’s deputies and officers from the Virginia State Police and Town of Orange Police Department pursued the car down Route 20, through the town of Orange, and then southbound on U.S. 15 at speeds of up to 85 mph, according to the release.

The driver continued south even after having her front tires spiked by officers, the release said. At one point, officers reported that the driver pulled onto the median to avoid a moving roadblock, then returned to U.S. 15, going south in the northbound lane.

After the vehicle struck a 2002 Honda Accord, the driver fled on foot into a nearby yard, where she was apprehended.

Karen Baumann

Karen E. Baumann (aka Karen Rader), 49, of Stafford was charged with reckless driving, driving under the influence of drugs, refusal to provide a blood sample, felonious eluding of a police officer, possession of cocaine, resisting arrest and attempted involuntary manslaughter, the release said.

At the time she was apprehended, Baumann was also wanted in King George and Stafford counties for felony probation violations, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Baumann was placed in the Central Virginia Regional Jail without bond pending a hearing.

Dan McFarland:

dmcfarland@freelancestar.com

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