Jon Johnson File Photo/Gila Herald:
GRAHAM COUNTY – A man was arrested and booked into the Graham County Jail early Sunday morning after allegedly intentionally running onto the highway in the way of traffic east of Safford.
The man, identified as Steven Irish, was apprehended after a brief standoff and was examined and cleared by medical staff at Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center before being incarcerated.
Deputies were initially dispatched at about 11:36 p.m. on Saturday regarding a man in the middle of Highway 70 stopping traffic near Bowie Avenue.
One reporting party advised Irish had run out in front of her vehicle as she was westbound on the highway. After nearly striking the man, the driver pulled over and attempted to coax him out of the roadway, according to GCSO reports. However, upon learning that the driver would call for help, Irish responded angrily and said he would combat the police.
The driver, who had a child in her vehicle, drove away from Irish but attempted to warn other vehicles of the situation. A second witness also advised that Irish had run toward his vehicle and shouted at him when the witness tried to talk to him.
When deputies arrived on the scene, they initially held Irish at gunpoint but switched to TASER weapons after seeing he was unarmed.
Irish was taken into custody following a brief struggle as additional deputies arrived and assisted in the arrest.
Irish appeared agitated after being taken into custody and was sweating profusely while making unintelligible statements. The officer believed he was likely under the influence of some drug and Irish was taken to MGRMC for evaluation. After being cleared by the hospital he was booked into jail.
