Yellville Man Arrested Nearly Two Years After Fleeing Law Enforcement

A Yellville man has been arrested nearly two years after he fled during a traffic stop at a high rate of speed with two small children unrestrained in the vehicle.

Facing seven charges in connection with the incident is 30-year-old Joseph Alan Hardman.

According to the probable cause statement in the case, the pursuit started in eastern Boone County Sept. 6, 2020 when a sheriff’s deputy noticed a truck with a license plate that was for a different vehicle. When the deputy tried to make a traffic stop, Hardman fled. At one point, Hardman went down a dead-end road and drove through a yard to reverse his direction of travel. Hardman passed two other deputies as he fled the area, nearly striking one of their patrol cars.

As deputies continued their pursuit, Hardman traveled down a one-lane dirt road in Marion County at a high rate of speed. Hardman continued onto another Marion County road, traveling to his grandmother’s house at the end of the road. An area resident showed deputies where Hardman had probably gone.

After a short search, deputies found the truck behind Hardman’s grandmother’s house at the end of a trail in the woods. Two small children and their mother were in the truck. The woman confirmed Hardman was driving the truck. One of the children said he hit his head in the truck as Hardman was fleeing. The deputy noted there were no child restraints in the vehicle.

Hardman had already fled the area on foot by the time officers arrived. During a search of the truck, officers found a loaded .38 special rifle.

Hardman is charged with two felony counts of endangering the welfare of a minor and one count each of fleeing and possession of firearms by certain persons. Misdemeanor charges include reckless driving, no child restraint and having fictitious vehicle tags.

Hardman has previous felony convictions out of Marion County for residential burglary and theft of property.

(From KTLO)