Ian Cramer
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Ian Cramer pleaded guilty on Friday to all the charges he faced in connection with a car-chase crash that killed a North Dakota sheriff’s deputy.
Ian Cramer, 43, changed his plea in the Dec. 6, 2023, death of Mercer County Sheriff’s Deputy Paul Martin, 53. The charges included homicide while fleeing a peace officer, fleeing a peace officer, preventing arrest, reckless endangerment, driving under suspension, possession of methamphetamine, possession of cocaine, unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of marijuana.
The judge ordered a mental evaluation ahead of his sentencing. The homicide offense alone is punishable in North Dakota by up to 20 years in prison and/or a $20,000 fine.
Ian Cramer is the son of Kevin Cramer, a Republican who is running for a second Senate term, has said his son “suffers from serious mental disorders which manifest in severe paranoia and hallucinations.”
Before the crash, Ian Cramer’s mother had taken him to a hospital because of mental health concerns. When she stepped out of the vehicle, Ian Cramer crawled into the driver’s seat and sped in reverse, smashing through a closed garage door to the ambulance bay and fleeing the hospital, Bismarck police said.
He later fled again when a deputy confronted him in Hazen, about 70 miles from Bismarck, and hit speeds over 100 mph, continuing even after a spiked device flattened two tires, according to court documents.
More spikes were set up, and Cramer swerved and then crashed head-on into Martin’s patrol vehicle, launching the deputy about 100 feet, authorities said. Martin was pronounced dead at a hospital.
In March, Ian Cramer pleaded not guilty to separate felony charges of theft, criminal mischief and reckless endangerment in connection with the events at the hospital. A jury trial was scheduled for November. Cramer has been held at the McLean County Jail in Washburn on $500,000 cash bail.
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