Granite Falls, Minnesota, man sentenced to prison for fleeing police

Dale Morin, West Central Tribune, Willmar, Minn.
·3 min read

Oct. 8—GRANITE FALLS

— A Granite Falls man was sentenced to 17 months in prison after pleading guilty to an amended charge of fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle.

Joseph Edward Tipton, 43, was sentenced Sept. 25 in Yellow Medicine County District Court by Judge Keith Helgeson, who gave Tipton credit for 37 days already served.

Tipton had also been charged with fleeing a peace officer by a means other than a motor vehicle, obstruction and driving after license revocation, all misdemeanors. An amended charge of felony fourth-degree assault of a peace officer was also added in an amended criminal complaint.

Per the plea agreement, those charges were dismissed once Tipton pleaded guilty to felony fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle.

Tipton was incarcerated Sept. 25 and is currently in custody at the Minnesota Correctional Facility in St. Cloud.

Under Minnesota law, offenders are required to serve at least two-thirds of a sentence in custody and may be allowed to serve the remaining time on supervised release. According to the Minnesota Department of Corrections, Tipton's expected release date is July 30, 2024.

According to the criminal complaint, the Granite Falls Police Department was informed by the state Department of Corrections that a warrant for Tipton's arrest was issued Feb. 8, 2023. Tipton was on supervised release from prison on a drug conviction.

On March 9, around 7 p.m., an officer patrolling the area in Granite Falls where a family member of Tipton lives saw the vehicle Tipton was known to drive. The officer verified the warrant was still active.

According to the complaint, the officer followed the vehicle when it left the apartment about an hour later. The officer requested backup and turned on his lights. A pursuit began.

According to the complaint, speeds of up to 30 mph were reached in the city. As Tipton accelerated, he lost control of the truck and slid through a stop sign as road conditions were icy.

The truck then turned east onto U.S. Highway 212. As the vehicle began to fishtail, Tipton attempted to turn north back onto city streets. The chase continued, and the officer then saw the truck's brake lights turn on and the driver's side door open as the vehicle kept moving.

According to the complaint, the officer watched Tipton jump out of the moving vehicle before it crashed into a snowbank.

The officer advised dispatch of a foot pursuit and didn't observe anyone else in the vehicle.

According to the complaint, the officer instructed Tipton to stop, but Tipton continued running from the officer in deep snow. The officer warned Tipton he had a felony warrant and was under arrest before deploying his Taser stun gun, which hit Tipton's Jacket.

The complaint states Tipton then stopped running and turned around and postured himself as if he was going to fight. The officer attempted a front takedown technique, but was unsuccessful as Tipton grabbed the officer by his vest and tossed him into the snow.

The officer gave verbal commands for Tipton to get down to the ground before deploying his Taser again. This time the probes hit Tipton in the lower body causing him to fall into the snowbank. Tipton then complied with the officer's commands and was arrested.