James William Hruska, 52, Cresco, Iowa, was arrested early Tuesday after tense moments ensued during a traffic stop.

Thursday, July 13, 2000

James William Hruska, 52, Cresco, Iowa, was arrested early Tuesday after tense moments ensued during a traffic stop.

According to a Mower County Sheriff’s Department report, Hruska was observed driving a pickup truck along County Highway 14 near the Mower County No. 3 intersection north of LeRoy.

Hruska’s pickup truck was towing a one-row corn picker, when a sheriff’s deputy stopped him at 12:49 a.m. Tuesday.

When confronted by the deputy, Hruska became belligerent and uncooperative.

When the deputy returned to the patrol car to run a driver’s license check on Hruska, he returned to the pickup truck.

Hruska then reached beneath the seat of the truck and exited the vehicle and ran to the rear of the corn picker near the roadside ditch and, the deputy said, appeared to point something in the direction of the law enforcement officer.

Two other sheriff’s deputies arrived as backup for the lone officer, and moments later a Grand Meadow Police Department officer and a Minnesota State Patrol trooper were also on the scene to provide more backup.

Hruska came forward and was unarmed, but a chemical spray was needed to subdue him and place him in a car for transportation to the Mower County Jail in Austin.

A loaded shotgun plus extra ammunition was found in the pickup truck as well as a loaded .22 caliber handgun.

Hruska told officers he was moving the corn picker from his mother’s farm at Owatonna to Cresco, Iowa, but carried a Missouri driver’s license which initially aroused officers’ suspicions.

His belligerent actions, including his initial comments to the deputy, when asked to provide his driver’s license also escalated tensions. Hruska was quoted as telling the deputy, "You started it and I’m going to finish it," when he went back to his pickup truck’s cab where the two loaded weapons were present.

He faces possible charges of making terroristic threats to peace officers, having uncased weapons in his possession and obstructing legal process, according to the sheriff department’s report.