A 24-year-old woman who drove her car at a U.S. Border Patrol agent will spend nine months in prison after being sentenced in federal court in Portland Monday.
Olivia Wilkins of Thomaston pleaded guilty in March to assaulting a U.S. Border Patrol agent engaged in official duties, and could have spent up to 20 years in prison.
Prosecutors say Wilkins drove at a border patrol agent who was taking a person into custody at a crash scene in Washington, Maine, and then left the scene.
They say Wilkins came upon the scene and parked close to officers, voiced concerns about Border Patrol’s presence, but was allowed to observe the activity from further away.
Prosecutors say Wilkins then quickly accelerated toward the agent who had taken the person into custody, who pulled the individual off the roadside away from the oncoming vehicle.
They say Wilkins stopped her car short of hitting the agent or the individual in custody before swerving back into the lane of travel and fleeing the scene.
She was tracked down and arrested a short time later.
No one was injured in the incident, but the judge imposing the sentence told Wilkins she was lucky an agent who understandably pointed a gun at her car had not fired the weapon.
Prosecutors say the FBI investigated the case.
