Man Charged With Leading Officers on High Speed Chase in Marathon County Appears in Court

Tuesday, June 18th, 2024 -- 11:01 AM

(Mike Leischner, WSAU) A man accused of leading officers on a chase through Marathon County earlier this month has entered a not guilty plea to multiple felony counts.

According to Mike Leischner with WSAU, Justin Phillips entered the plea on Monday for nine counts including two misdemeanors and seven felonies. The chase started outside Mosinee when officers tried to initiate a traffic stop on a vehicle that ran a stop sign.

The chase went through Mosinee to Interstate 39/US 51 northbound to Wausau, where officers deployed spike strips and a PIT maneuver to bring the chase to an end near the Stewart Avenue exit.

He’s facing seven felony counts including fleeing an officer, taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent, possession of an electronic weapon and burglar’s tools, and bail jumping.

The case has been cross-referenced with more than a dozen other county forfeitures and state cases, including traffic violations and retail theft charges. He remains jailed on a $100,000 cash bond.

Should he post, he would have several no-contact orders against victims and businesses including Fleet Farm, People’s State Bank, AmericInn, and gambling machines.

Many of the charges related to the police chase are class H felonies, which carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison. If he’s found guilty on all six counts he faces up to 36 years in prison. His next pretrial conference is scheduled for July 9th.

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