Wayne County man in custody in Arkansas after reportedly exchanging gunshots with police

Douglas Walker, Richmond Palladium-Item
·2 min read
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RICHMOND, Ind. — A Wayne County man is in custody in Arkansas after reportedly leading police in that state on a vehicle chase and exchanging gunfire with state troopers.

Joshua Allen Harrison, 36, was taken into custody on Monday night, according to the Magnolia Reporter, a news website in southern Arkansas.

News reports indicated Harrison was traveling on Interstate 30 in southwestern Arkansas late Monday when the pursuit by Arkansas State Police troopers began. During the chase, the Richmond man allegedly fired gunshots at the troopers, who returned fire.

After a trooper performed a "tactical vehicle intervention," Harrison's westbound vehicle reportedly crossed the median to the interstate's eastbound lanes and was struck by an eastbound tractor-trailer.

Harrison, who was treated at an area hospital, was taken into custody, as was a passenger in his vehicle, Jennifer East, 43, also of Richmond.

According to records at the Hempstead County Detention Center in Hope, Arkansas, Harrison faces preliminary charges including fleeing and aggravated assault. He was being held Thursday without bond.

East was reportedly released from the same jail on Wednesday.

The Arkansas State Police criminal investigations division was continuing to probe the events leading to Harrison's arrest. A prosecuting attorney will determine what formal charges might be filed in the case.

A warrant was issued by Harrison's arrest in Wayne Superior Court 1 on April 19 after he failed to show up for an initial hearing on six charges filed against him on April 4: possession of meth, unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, possession of an altered firearm, intimidation, criminal recklessness and possession of paraphernalia.

Those charges stem from an arrest on April 1 that saw Richmond police seize more than 100 grams of meth.

Harrison, most recently listed at an address in Cambridge City, has been convicted of crimes in Indiana including armed robbery, battery, criminal mischief, criminal recklessness, possession of meth and resisting law enforcement,

His 2021 convictions for possession of meth and criminal recklessness stemmed from an arrest after Harrison fired a hangun at another man and managed to evade police after a chase.

Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Wayne County man in custody in Arkansas after chase, gunfire