Man said he did heroin before leading cops on chase

A 25-year-old man who told authorities he smoked heroin 15 minutes before leading them on a high-speed chase through northern Ozaukee County in the rain recently has been charged with multiple felonies.

Sheboygan resident Dante J. Dorn hit speeds of about 115 mph as he raced north on Highway 57, passing vehicles, including an ambulance, that had to take evasive action to avoid being hit, according to a criminal complaint.

Dorn, who was arrested in a Sheboygan cornfield after deputies eventually disabled his car with tire spikes and he ran from the vehicle, is charged in Ozaukee County Circuit Court with attempting to flee an officer, second-degree recklessly endangering safety and bail jumping.

At the time of the chase, Dorn was free in lieu of bail in Sheboygan County, where he is charged with possession of cocaine.

At 1:57 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 15, Ozaukee sheriff’s deputy Wade Navis spotted a car with excessively tinted windows traveling north on I-43 in the Town of Saukville and, while following the vehicle, saw it cross the fog line and stray into the other lane of traffic, the complaint states.

Navis activated his vehicle’s emergency lights and siren as the vehicle, which authorities later learned was being driven by Dorn, headed north on Highway 57.

Dorn accelerated to about 100 mph and sped through the intersection of highways 57 and H in Fredonia, where the speed limit is 45 mph, according to the complaint.

At the intersection of highways 57 and D, Dorn raced past an ambulance that swerved toward the shoulder to avoid the speeding vehicle, the complaint states.

As Dorn crossed into Sheboygan County, authorities set up two sets of tire spikes that Dorn avoided, but a third set stopped his vehicle on Highway 57 at  Highway 28.

Dorn ran from his vehicle into a corn field, ignoring commands from deputies to stop. He was caught and arrested after a brief foot chase.

The chase covered nearly 19 miles in just less than 11 minutes.

An Ozaukee sheriff’s dog was called to the scene and detected drugs in Dorn’s vehicle. Deputies found a piece of aluminum between the driver’s seat and center console with a charred substance on it that they suspected had been used to smoke heroin. Also in the vehicle were packages of Narcan, a medication that reverses the effect of opioid drugs, as well as small screwdrivers and a torch lighter, all of which can be used to ingest drugs, according to the complaint.

When questioned after being arrested, Dorn told deputies he used the tin foil and lighter they found to smoke $20 worth of heroin about 15 minutes before the chase began, the complaint states.

Field sobriety tests suggested Dorn was impaired and an evaluation by a drug recognition expert indicated he was likely under the influence of narcotic drugs and marijuana, according to the complaint.

Dorn is being held in the Ozaukee County jail in lieu of $30,000 bail.

In 2022, he was charged in Sheboygan County as a repeat offender with possession of cocaine and drug paraphernalia.

Dorn’s bail was initially set at $500, then increased to $1,000 and finally $2,000. He posted $2,000 to be released from jail, but after failing to appear for a plea and sentencing hearing on Nov. 9, 2023, a warrant for his arrest was issued, according to court records.