Highway Argument Leads to OWI and Domestic Battery Charges After Witness Sees Woman Pulled From Truck 🚨🚘

An Orleans man was arrested Monday afternoon after a passing motorist witnessed him physically pull his wife from a pickup truck, causing her to tumble down a roadside embankment along State Road 37.

Travis Armstrong, 33, was taken into custody by the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department on multiple preliminary felony and misdemeanor allegations following the highway incident and a subsequent tracking effort by local deputies.

The Roadside Discovery

On June 8, 2026, an officer with the Lawrence County Sheriff's Department responded to a report of an unknown medical emergency in the 1600 block of State Road 37 in Mitchell. Upon arrival, the officer located an intoxicated female victim lying directly alongside the roadway.

The victim informed investigators that she and her husband, Armstrong, had been traveling southbound when a severe verbal argument erupted. She stated that while Armstrong was operating the vehicle, he struck her twice in the face with a closed fist—hitting her lower lip and the side of her head—before forcefully ejecting her from the vehicle. First responders documented a visible laceration and swelling to her lower lip before she was transported by Lawrence County EMS for further medical treatment.

Witness Recounts Embankment Tumble

The standard domestic violence investigation quickly shifted when a passing witness came forward to contradict any claims of a mutual separation.

The witness reported traveling southbound when she observed a white Chevrolet single-cab pickup truck with a board serving as its rear window or tailgate. The witness explicitly stated she watched the male driver reach over, grab the female passenger, and forcefully pull her completely out of the cab. The witness then watched the victim tumble down a steep roadside embankment before the truck activated its hazard lights and sped away southbound at a high rate of speed.

Tracking the Suspect & Sobriety Testing

Sheriff's deputies tracked the distinct white Chevrolet pickup to a residence in the 800 block of Parks Addition Road in Mitchell, where Armstrong was located and immediately detained.

After being advised of his Miranda rights, Armstrong claimed that his wife simply wanted to get out of the truck to mourn her late mother, so he pulled over near the drive-in to let her out. He denied touching her, claiming he "didn't touch her a bit" and even tried to help her back inside.

However, Armstrong openly admitted to officers that he had been drinking heavily prior to operating the truck, stating he had consumed "maybe four or five" alcoholic beverages and drove to his cousin's house to get away from his wife. He reportedly admitted to the officer that he knew he was over the legal limit.

Armstrong was put through Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFSTs), which yielded heavily failing marks:

• Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus: Armstrong exhibited a perfect 6 out of 6 clues of physical intoxication and openly stated to the testing officer that he could feel himself "wobbling" during the evaluation.
• Walk-and-Turn Test: He was unable to maintain his balance during the instruction phase, stepped off the designated line twice, utilized his arms for balance, turned improperly, and took an incorrect number of steps.
• One-Leg Stand: Armstrong stopped abruptly during the initial setup and refused to continue the test.

A roadside Portable Breath Test (PBT) registered an initial alcohol level of 0.127% BAC. Armstrong was subsequently transported to IU Health Bedford for a mandatory chemical blood draw before being booked into the Lawrence County Jail.

Preliminary Charges:
🔹 Domestic Battery (Class A Misdemeanor)
🔹 Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated – Endangerment (Class A Misdemeanor)
🔹 Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated (Class C Misdemeanor)

Case Number: S26-00708 Arresting Officer: Officer Kaden Flynn, Lawrence County Sheriff's Department

Disclaimer: All subjects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.