WELLS RIVER — A woman fleeing from authorities struck and injured a Haverhill police officer with a vehicle Friday.
Within the hour, Vermont State Police had arrested a suspect, a fugitive from justice with multiple outstanding warrants out of Orange County, in Wells River.
According to police, what started as a welfare check on Central Street in Woodsville at around 6:30 p.m. on Friday ended with an arrest for Christina Garrison, 37, who fled across state lines to Vermont before being apprehended about 20 minutes later.
Operating a vehicle as her means of escape, Garrison struck a Haverhill police officer who was on foot at the scene, according to a news release from the Haverhill Police Department.
Garrison, who has no fixed address, then fled to Vermont, where she was wanted for failure to appear in court for three criminal cases with an active pretrial status.
The officer was transported for medical evaluation and treatment, and is expected to make a full recovery from non-life threatening injuries, the news release said.
A coordinated investigation involving the Haverhill Police Department, the Vermont State Police and the Lisbon, N.H., Police Department allowed authorities to identify Garrison as the suspect of this crime, the release said.
Vermont State Police took Garrison into police custody in Wells River without further incident. She was arrested for outstanding Vermont warrants and faces a New Hampshire charge of second-degree assault of the responding officer.
“Additional Vermont State Police and Haverhill charges are expected as the investigation continues,” the police news release stated.
There were warrants for Garrison’s arrest for failure to appear in three different cases: felony cocaine possession and fentanyl trafficking in Bradford, Vt., felony aggravated vehicle operation without owner consent in Fairlee and misdemeanor vehicle operation without owner consent in Bradford.
The Orange County Criminal Court issued warrants for her failure to appear in court for the two felony cases on Feb. 25, and issued the warrant for the misdemeanor case on March 4.
Garrison did not previously appear to enter a plea for her felony drug case or misdemeanor vehicle operation case. She pleaded not guilty to the felony charge of aggravated vehicle operation out of Fairlee on Dec. 30.
Upon arrest by Vermont State Police, Garrison was held at Northeast Correctional Facility in St. Johnsbury with a $100,000 bond and a hearing scheduled for Monday afternoon at the Orange County Superior Court in Chelsea, according to a state police release. The investigation remains ongoing.