A Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper who spotted a driver swerving on a Nashville road tried to pull him over, setting off a chase that stretched more than 20 miles into Dickson County before the man crashed into a road sign and was caught hiding at a hotel. Jose Margarito Mendez-Tranquilino, the driver identified in the case, reportedly hit speeds up to 107 mph and nearly struck multiple other vehicles before troopers finally took him into custody.
According to WKRN News 2, the pursuit began after a trooper noticed Mendez-Tranquilino swerving and attempted a traffic stop, only for the driver to allegedly flee west on the interstate. THP officials say he knocked down a sign post at Exit 172 on Interstate 40 West, an area in Dickson County where Highway 46 connects to a stretch of hotels, restaurants and gas stations serving interstate travelers, according to Main Street Media of Tennessee. A Metro Nashville police helicopter tracked the fleeing vehicle to a hotel in Dickson County, where troopers moved in and took him into custody.
How Air Support Kept the Chase From Turning Deadly
The use of an aerial unit rather than a prolonged ground pursuit lines up with how Metro Nashville Police Department typically handles fleeing vehicles. The department restricts ground officers from engaging in high-speed pursuits unless a suspect poses an immediate public safety threat, instead leaning on its Aviation Unit and thermal imaging to track vehicles from above, as Hoodline has previously reported. That coordination between air support and ground troopers allowed Tennessee Highway Patrol, which holds jurisdiction across all 95 Tennessee counties and state highways, to guide an apprehending unit safely across the Nashville-to-Dickson County line without sustaining a dangerous high-speed ground chase.
Mendez-Tranquilino was booked into the Davidson County jail and now faces one felony count of evading arrest with a motor vehicle, along with charges of driving under the influence and reckless driving. Under Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-16-603, intentionally evading arrest in a vehicle is a Class E felony carrying one to six years in prison, a fine of up to $3,000, and a mandatory license suspension of six months to two years. If prosecutors determine the flight created a risk of death or serious injury to others — a question left open given the report that he nearly struck multiple vehicles — the charge can escalate to a Class D felony punishable by two to 12 years.
DUI and Reckless Driving Add to the Legal Exposure
The DUI charge alone carries its own weight under Tennessee law. A standard first-offense conviction is a Class A misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum of 48 hours in jail, fines between $350 and $1,500, and a one-year license revocation that, unlike many offenses, never becomes eligible for expungement in Tennessee. The reckless driving charge, defined under state law as driving in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property, is a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail, a $500 fine, and six points added to a driving record — with 12 points in a 12-month span triggering an automatic license suspension.
A judge set Mendez-Tranquilino's bond at $5,500, but bond alone will not get him out of the Davidson County jail. Jail records show he is ineligible for release because of a detainer issued by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Federal regulations under 8 C.F.R. § 287.7 authorize ICE to request that local agencies hold someone for up to 48 hours beyond their scheduled release so federal officers can assume custody, and people picked up from Middle Tennessee under such holds are typically transferred to regional detention facilities in Tennessee or Georgia.
A State Mandate Now Locks in Local Cooperation
That hold is backed by a broader legal shift. Tennessee legislation passed in 2024 and effective this past July requires local law enforcement agencies and county jail administrators to honor federal ICE detainer requests, holding designated individuals for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise walk free. Data examined by Lighthouse Reports in February found that the share of ICE detainers honored by the Davidson County Sheriff's Office climbed from 50.5% to 59.8% amid this expanded state and federal cooperation, a trend tied to the same legislative push keeping Mendez-Tranquilino behind bars for now.
He is currently held at Davidson County's Downtown Detention Center, a 762-bed facility that opened in Nashville in May 2020 and serves as the county's primary intake site for people awaiting court dates or federal transfer. It remains unclear whether prosecutors will pursue the enhanced Class D felony evading charge, what his current plea status is in Davidson County General Sessions Court, or when federal immigration authorities plan to take custody of him.
