CHAMBERLAIN-A Kimball man who fought police and EMS responders during his arrest will spend eight years on probation, a Brule County court determined earlier this month.
On March 5, 27-year-old Kyle Koepke was given two suspended two-year prison sentences for assaulting law enforcement officers on Nov. 6.
On that date, police responded to a Kimball home where Koepke was "out of control," according to court documents. He was uncooperative during the arrest, yelling at and trying to fight officers while being put in the patrol car and trying to kick out the car's windows and cage en route to the Brule County Jail.
The officer driving Koepke stopped the car to prevent him from breaking anything inside, and when he opened the car door, Koepke jumped out and tried to run away, at which point he was tackled.
The Kimball ambulance service responded to where the patrol car had stopped, and as an EMS crew attempted to strap Koepke into a cot to transport him to Chamberlain, he tried to fight with them, as well, and yelled at them after he was taken to a Chamberlain hospital.
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After being given a drug to make him less aggressive, Koepke, who had a BAC of 0.35, was then kept at the hospital for observation and given a mental health evaluation.
Koepke initially appeared in court on charges of aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer, a Class 2 felony, and disorderly conduct, a Class 2 misdemeanor. His charges were eventually reduced, and he pleaded not guilty on Nov. 27 to six counts of simple assault against a law enforcement officer and one count of obstructing police.
He pleaded guilty to two of the assault charges on Feb. 5, and the remaining charges were dismissed.
Koepke was given credit for the two days he served in jail following his arrest, and he must pay a total of $713 in fines and court costs.
Koepke had also been arrested in January 2018 for parking a car with a loaded gun in the center console in the middle of a street while intoxicated and was reportedly uncooperative during that arrest and transport, as well, ultimately leading to the arresting officer using a taser on him.
