Fruitland man drives through a neighbor's property, hitting a tree while drunk
- Travis Uresk
- Jan 21
- 5 min read
By Travis Uresk
1/21/25
| Fruitland, Ut. | January 15th, 2025 |
At around 5:00 pm, Cpl. Nichols received a call from dispatch regarding a citizen assist requested by the complainant in the Fruitland area.
The complainant stated he wanted to speak with a deputy about getting some help but declined to provide further information.
The deputy called the complainant, who said that his friend was getting out of control with his alcoholism and didn't want to get him into trouble, but he believed turning him in to law enforcement might be the only way he wouldn't hurt anyone.
The complainant identified the man as 61-year-old Tracy J. Ercanbrack, who was currently at his residence. He told the deputy that Tracy had driven through his friend's property and had struck a tree.
Cpl. Nichols responded to the scene where Tracy hit the tree. The complainant and the property owner reported that they witnessed Tracy driving his burgundy Ford pickup, get out of the vehicle, and start an argument with the complainant. Both of them stated that Tracy seemed highly intoxicated.
The complainant said he threatened to call police, which made Tracy run back to his vehicle and attempt to leave. They watched Tracy back his vehicle and sideswipe the tree.
The deputy checked Tracy's property and didn't find the truck. He then ran Tracy's information and learned he was an alcohol-restricted driver and required to have an ignition interlock device in his vehicle. An attempt to locate (ATL) was issued for Tracy and his vehicle, but we were initially unable to locate him.
It was later learned that Tracy was on probation with AP&P. On 1/16/25, in the evening, AP&P agents attempted to locate Tracy at his residence for a compliance check. Tracy's truck and another vehicle were both parked in front of the residence, but Tracy didn't answer the door. AP&P Agent Broadbent requested that Cpl. Nichols assisted and attempted to make contact with Tracy the next day.
On 1/17/25, at 7:00 am, Deputy Green and Nichols went to Tracy's residence, where they again saw both of his vehicles parked outside. The truck had damage to the passenger-side mirror.
As the officers approached the residence, they could see Tracy walking around inside the home through an uncovered window.
The deputy knocked on the front door, identifying themselves as the Duchesne County Sheriff's Office, and told Tracy to come to the door, which he refused. Tracy was quiet and could be seen walking to the back of the residence (which was a small converted storage container that had been made into a livable residence), so Cpl Nichols went to the other side of the house and could see through another uncovered window.
Tracy was seated on the toilet (his pants were up), trying to hide his face. The deputy knocked on the window, identifying himself, told Tracy that he could see him and that he needed to come to the door, but Tracy continued to ignore the officers.
Cpl. Nichols reported the situation to Agent Broadbent, who said he would try to call Tracy. Agent Broadbent reported back shortly, stating he had contacted Tracy but initially hung up on the agent. He called him again and finally spoke with Agent Broadbent, telling him that he wasn't home. Agent Broadbent said he had officers on the scene who could see him right now and that he needed to come to the door.
Tracy finally exited the residence quickly closing his door behind him. Tracy was uncooperative and belligerent with the two deputies and said he didn't answer the door because he was asleep.
Tracy wouldn't say how much he had to drink but did say his last drink was after the officers arrived.
Cpl. Nichols asked Tracy about his previous encounter with his neighbors, to which he immediately became more aggravated at the inquiry and argued that he didn't do anything. He said he went to his neighbor's residence to confront him about driving down his road at 40 miles per hour kicking up dust.
When asked about the damage to his truck, Tracy said his neighbor had threatened him. So he left in a hurry, hitting the tree. When asked what the threat was, Tracy stated he was threatened to have the police called on him, which, to him, was indeed a threat.
The deputy asked Tracy to submit to a portable breath test, to which he responded, “Fuck you, I’m not giving you anything.”
Cpl. Nichols told Tracy he was under arrest, and when doing so, he retrieved a prescription bottle (later identified as percocets that were prescribed to him) and attempted to dump all the pills in his mouth. The deputy was able to knock the bottle away and, with Deputy Green's assistance, took Tracy to the ground, face down.
One deputy kept his hand on Tracy's jaw, keeping his mouth open and from swallowing any of the pills. The deputy believed he was successful in keeping him from eating any of the medication and later found four pills that had scattered on the ground.
Tracy stated he wasn't able to swallow any of them and was upset about it, saying that the officers had hurt his shoulder he just had surgery on and that he had every right to take one of his pain pills.
Cpl. Nichols stated that it is a common practice that someone will attempt to overdose in law enforcement's presence so that they know they'll be taken to a hospital and released.
Tracy did not physically resist once on the ground, so the officers accommodated Tracy’s shoulder injury by putting him in belly chains and handcuffing him with his hands in the front.
After standing Tracy up, the deputy was checking the handcuffs for tightness, and Tracy threatened Cpl. Nichols said, "If you touch me, I'm going to kick you in the nuts."
Tracy was searched for weapons and contraband, escorted to the patrol vehicle, and transported to the Uintah Basin Medical Center, where he was examined and treated and then cleared.
He was then transported to the Duchesne County Jail where he was charged with:
Threatening a peace officer, a class A misdemeanor; obstruction of justice, a class A misdemeanor; interfering with an arresting officer, a class B misdemeanor; failure to install an ignition interlock device, a class C misdemeanor; and intoxication, a class C misdemeanor. Cpl. Nichols informed Tracy that his probation officer had requested a portable breath test, advising him that if he refused, it would count as a probation violation. Tracy refused anyway. Cpl. Nichols advised Agent Broadbent of the results of this investigation and put a 72 hour AP&P hold.
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