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Crystal Falls man pleads not guilty in chase

MICHAEL SANTI

MARINETTE, Wis. — A Crystal Falls man pleaded not guilty Friday to Marinette County charges stemming from a 2015 high-speed chase through two states.

Michael John Santi, 52, will return to Marinette County Court on March 3 for a status conference on two counts of recklessly endangering safety-second degree, a 10-year felony, as well as a charge of flee or elude an officer, a 3 1/2-year felony.

A Marinette County Sheriff’s deputy reportedly saw Santi driving a red Dodge pickup truck erratically on U.S. 141 near Crivitz, Wis., on Dec. 18, 2015.

When the deputy attempted to stop the vehicle, it sped north on the highway and continued into Michigan.

Dickinson County deputies used stop sticks to deflate the front tires, but the fleeing vehicle continued north through the U.S. 141/U.S. 2 junction in Quinnesec, then west on U.S. 2 through Iron Mountain.

After side-swiping two vehicles near Chapin Street, the truck hit a third vehicle, left the road and hit a tree.

Santi was taken to the hospital and the driver of one of the other vehicles sought her own treatment for non-life-threatening injuries, according to the initial press release.

Marinette County prosecutors initially filed charges in March while Santi was in the middle of a criminal responsibility examination on his Dickinson County charges.

Examiners determined in April that Santi was legally insane at the time of the chase, so his Dickinson County case was handled through the mental health system rather than criminal justice, Dickinson County Prosecutor Lisa Richards said.

Marinette County authorities took him into custody in October.

Nikki Younk can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 41, or nyounk@ironmountaindailynews.com.

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