Fargo woman escapes serious injuries in Barnes County incident

VALLEY CITY, ND (NewsDakota.com) – Two Barnes County Sheriffs responded to a reckless driving case
Complaint on Monday, June 24, around 1:30 p.m. A vehicle traveling east on Interstate 94 near mile marker 275, later
crashed near mile marker 297 eastbound at about 1:50 p.m.

Barnes County Sheriff Randy McClaflin said the reporting person, a 26-year-old woman, was also the driver of the reckless vehicle, a white 2023 Hyundai Tucson. Raymie Valleen of Fargo contacted Barnes County dispatch and reported that her accelerator pedal was stuck and the vehicle she was driving was traveling at speeds in excess of 90 miles per hour. Valleen made several attempts to turn the vehicle off, put it in neutral/park, and brake, but those attempts failed.

One Barnes County Sheriff’s Deputy was able to position his patrol vehicle in front of Valleen’s vehicle while the other Barnes County Sheriff’s Deputy was able to position his patrol vehicle behind Valleen. Both deputies communicated with Valleen through a Barnes County dispatcher while attempting to disable Valleen’s vehicle. At one point, Valleen was able to slow her vehicle enough that she decided to pull into the median and use the barriers to stop the runaway vehicle before it struck a slow-moving vehicle in front of the lead deputy. Valleen pulled into the median and struck the barrier with the side of her vehicle. The vehicle was disabled. Valleen was uninjured and was transported to Mercy Hospital by sheriff’s deputies as a precaution.

The North Dakota Highway Patrol will investigate the accident.

Sheriff McClaflin said Valleen remained as calm as possible and her quick reaction helped her avoid injury to anyone else on the road. Sheriff McClaflin also wants to remind everyone to pay attention to emergency lights when driving on the road.

Barnes County Press Release