Charges: Man grabbed steering wheel from girfriend, crashed on I-94 before shootout with trooper

A man grabbed the steering wheel from his girlfriend, crashed the vehicle on a Minneapolis interstate and got in a shootout with a state trooper, according to charges filed Tuesday.

Eddie James Freeman, 23, of Minneapolis, was charged in Hennepin County District Court with one count of first-degree assault, four counts of second-degree assault and one count of fourth-degree assault in connection with the confrontation Saturday on Interstate 94 near the Dowling Avenue exit. The gunfire did not result in any injuries.

Freeman remains jailed in lieu of $300,000 bail ahead of a court appearance Wednesday. Court records do not list an attorney for him.

Also Tuesday, the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) identified the trooper involved in the altercation as Mark Vande Steeg. The agency said Vande Steeg has been in law enforcement slightly more than a year and is on standard critical incident leave as its investigation continues. Body camera and squad camera video captured portions of the incident, the BCA said.

The agency said its crime scene personnel recovered a handgun from the location where Freeman was arrested. The personnel also saw bullet damage to Vande Steeg’s squad vehicle, the BCA added.

According to the charges:

Troopers were sent at about 10:15 p.m. Saturday to the spot where Freeman crashed the vehicle. While en route, they were alerted to shots being fired near the crash scene and were given a description of a possible suspect.

As Vande Steeg arrived, he put his squad spotlight on a man who matched the description. In response, Freeman fired several shots at the trooper.

A Minneapolis police officer arrived, and Freeman fired in the officer’s direction.

More officers arrived and surrounded Freeman, who threw his gun down and was arrested. While in custody, he spit on an officer’s face.

Freeman’s girlfriend told police that as they were traveling on I-94, she told him their relationship was over. He then grabbed the steering wheel and sent the vehicle crashing. She said he got out of the vehicle and she heard the gunfire, but couldn’t see what was happening because the deployed airbags blocked her view.

Before his arrest, Freeman pointed his gun at two people who stopped to see whether anyone was injured from the crash. They said they heard five or six gunshots, got in their vehicles and drove off.

Officers saw a bullet hole in the crashed vehicle’s driver’s side door. The complaint did not address whose gunfire hit the vehicle.