A 45-year-old Saint Paul woman is facing four criminal charges after police say she assaulted her ex-boyfriend and bit a bartender during a fight at a Bloomington restaurant, then led officers on a brief car chase that ended when a patrol vehicle rammed her car to a stop. Lakeisha Nasha Yates left Chevy’s Fresh Mex in a gray Nissan Versa on August 15 after the altercation, and was arrested a short distance away.
According to charges filed in Hennepin County District Court, as reported by MN Crime, police responded to reports of a man and woman fighting inside the bar at Chevy’s Fresh Mex, located at 2251 Killebrew Drive across from the Mall of America. The victim told police he and Yates had dated for six months but were no longer together, and both he and Yates had been drinking, a detail bar staff confirmed to investigators.
A Comment From a Server Sparked the Fight
Prosecutors say the confrontation began after a server touched the victim’s shoulders and made a comment to him, which prompted Yates to become assaultive, per the charges detailed by MN Crime. She allegedly threw several drinks and food items at the victim, hit him on his right side, and ripped a chain from his neck, breaking it in the process. The victim was left with scratch marks from the encounter.
The bar’s manager reported that staff intervened when Yates became animated, pushed items off the bar and yelled, according to the charging documents. During the chaos, Yates allegedly bit one bartender and scratched another. Despite the physical altercation, the bartenders who were targeted declined to pursue charges themselves — though Minnesota prosecutors retain independent authority to file charges based on police evidence and public safety concerns regardless of a victim’s wishes, a legal reality confirmed by MN Crime’s reporting.
Police Say She Fled, Then Refused to Stop
As Yates drove away from the bar, an officer spotted the Nissan near 24th Avenue and Lindau Lane and observed it drift left across the lane line, according to the charges. The officer ordered the driver to pull over using a patrol car’s microphone before activating emergency lights, and then the siren, when the car did not comply…