The Baxter County Sheriff’s Office arrested 36 year old Stephanie Manuel or rural Mountain Home yesterday, April 5th, on an outstanding arrest warrant that had been sought after she was involved in a motor vehicle traffic accident on March 26th on Sycamore Springs Road.
Deputy Justin Haight was dispatched to the accident at around 11:00 PM on March 26th . He found a heavily damaged Chevrolet Impala in the ditch and a female with head injuries walking around the vehicle barefoot. The driver had run off the roadway in a curve and struck a tree. The female was identified as Manuel, and the vehicle belonged to her. Manuel initially claimed to have been a passenger in the vehicle, but evidence that was observed and examined later indicated that she had been driving, including finding her own shoes under the pedals in the driver area. No other persons were found at the accident scene. Deputy Haight also found a syringe in Manuel’s possession that was loaded with suspected methamphetamine.
Manuel was taken by ambulance to Baxter Regional Medical Center. At the request of the deputy, she submitted to providing a urine sample for drug analysis. Both the loaded syringe and the urine sample have been sent to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for analysis.
An arrest warrant was issued on March 31st based upon the filing of charges by the Prosecuting Attorney for the offenses of:
Possession of Controlled Substance – Methamphetamine – Felony
Possession of Drug Paraphernalia – Felony
Driving While Intoxicated – Misdemeanor
Careless Driving -Violation
Manuel was released from jail Monday afternoon after posting $2,500 bond on these charges. She will appear before the Baxter County Circuit Court to answer on April 22nd.
