On January 1, 2026, at approximately 10:49 PM, Officers from the City of Cloquet Police Department were dispatched to the area near Upper Lakes Foods call of a potential impaired driver who had driven onto the railroad tracks there and crashed into a box car of a train. The ATV was described as a green Honda ATV. Officers arrived on scene and located the offending ATV driver, who was now driving directly towards officers, and was being followed by the 911 caller. Officers then activated their emergency lights to stop the ATV driver, and they exited their squad vehicle.
Due to another recent occasion where an ATV ran from officers, officers were concerned this ATV driver might flee also. As the ATV driver drew closer, he sped up and looked like he was going to try and go around officers. Officers put their hands up to stop the ATV driver and yelled numerous times for them to stop. The ATV driver had a blank stare as he looked at officers and was driving past them when officers ran alongside the ATV and got him to stop. Officers then reached down and shut the ATV off.
The location within Cloquet, in the County of Carlton, State of Minnesota. The driver, later identified as Harold Francis Lockling, Jr., [DOB REDACTED], the defendant herein, asked what he did wrong and had slurred speech. His eyes were also glossy. Officers asked him to hop off his ATV, and he stared blankly at them for a time. When the defendant spoke officers could smell a strong odor of alcoholic beverage coming from him. Even though officers’ interaction with the defendant so far was very brief, it was apparent to them he was intoxicated, due to his slurred speech, blank look, glossy eyes, and the odor of alcohol.
When the defendant did finally step off his ATV, he immediately lost his balance and leaned into his ATV. As officers directed him toward the front of their squad, they noticed his balance was very poor, to the point where they thought he was going to fall over so they grabbed on to him. They then had him take a seat on the front of their bumper so he wouldn't fall over. Officers tried numerous times to identify the defendant, but the defendant refused to identify himself. This refusal occurred numerous times.
The defendant was eventually placed under arrest for suspicion of DWI and obstructing legal process crime. During a search incident to arrest, officers located his wallet which contained his ID card within it. Officers ran the defendant’s driving record and learned he was driving his ATV on the roadway while his privileges were cancelled as inimical to public safety. Officers then brought the defendant to the Carlton County Law Enforcement Center and invoked the Minnesota Breath Test Advisory against the defendant.
The defendant did submit to a test of his breath within 2 hours of driving, revealing a.25 breath alcohol concentration, within 2 hours of his driving. A check of the defendant's driving record revealed he had a prior criminal conviction for felony-level DUI from Carlton County on August 22, 2018, in court file number ••-CR-••-••••.
