Soldotna woman indicted after wild ride

  • By DAN BALMER
  • Tuesday, July 1, 2014 10:50pm
  • News

A Soldotna woman, who is alleged to have crashed a stolen truck and who Alaska State Troopers say attempted to bring drugs into Wildwood Pretrial Facility on June 18, was indicted on three felony charges in Kenai Superior Court Tuesday.

At her arraignment Tuesday, Jessica Rodman, 32, pleaded not guilty to vehicle theft in the first-degree, misconduct involving a controlled substance in the fourth-degree and promoting contraband in the first-degree. All three are Class C felonies and if convicted, Rodman could serve a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of $50,000 for each charge.

On June 18, troopers responded to a report of a single vehicle rollover at mile 106 of the Sterling Highway at about 7 a.m. and found Rodman, who crawled out the window of a white 1996 Toyota T100 pickup. After an eyewitness said Rodman was the only person in the vehicle, which conflicted with her claim she was hitchhiking, Rodman said she took the truck from a house in Kasilof, according to an affidavit filed by Trooper Ryan Tennis.

Rodman told troopers she got into a verbal altercation at a party and walked a mile away and jumped into an unlocked truck to sleep. A short time later, she took the truck with the intention of leaving it in town. Rodman told troopers she didn’t know how she lost control and crashed, according to the report.

In the affidavit, Tennis wrote that Rodman admitted using methamphetamine in a prior contact with her a couple days earlier. A broken glass pipe was found in the driver side of the truck. Rodman admitted the pipe was hers, but denied there were drugs in the vehicle and passed a field sobriety test.

The owner of the vehicle, Peggy Svrcek told Tennis she last saw her truck in the driveway at 4 a.m. and had left it unlocked with the keys under the seat. Svrcek said she didn’t know Rodman. Damage to the vehicle was estimated at $1,500-$2,000, according to the report.

Rodman was searched and arrested and taken to Wildwood Pretrial Facility. A correctional officer discovered a piece of folded lined paper in Rodman’s pants pocket with a substance that tested positive for crystal meth and weighed 0.5 grams. Rodman said she didn’t know the drugs were in her pocket, according to the report.

Rodman was released on bail and Brittney Cole was assigned as a third party custodian after a June 26 hearing in Kenai District Court. Her next court date is August 11 at the Kenai Courthouse.

Reach Dan Balmer at daniel.balmer@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in News

Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-Alaska) speaks to reporters about his decision to veto an education funding bill at the Alaska State Capitol on Thursday, April 17, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Dunleavy’s veto of education funding bill puts pressure on lawmakers during final month of session

Governor also previews new bill with $560 BSA increase, plus additional funds for policy initiatives.

Brent Johnson speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Assembly kills resolution asking for option to cap property tax increases

Alaska municipalities are required by state statute to assess all properties at their full and true value.

City of Kenai Public Works Director Scott Curtain; City of Kenai Mayor Brian Gabriel; Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche; Sen. Lisa Murkowski; Col. Jeffrey Palazzini; Elaina Spraker; Adam Trombley; and Kenai City Manager Terry Eubank cut the ribbon to celebrate the start of work on the Kenai River Bluff Stabilization Project in Kenai, Alaska, on Monday, June 10, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai bluff stabilization info meeting rescheduled for April 30

Originally, the event was scheduled for the same time as the Caring for the Kenai final presentations.

Project stakeholders cut a ribbon at the Nikiski Shelter of Hope on Friday, May 20, 2022, in Nikiski, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Peninsula organizations awarded mental health trust grants

Three organizations, in Seldovia, Seward and Soldotna, recently received funding from the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority.

Chickens are seen inside of a chicken house at Diamond M Ranch on Thursday, April 1, 2021, off Kalifornsky Beach Road near Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna council hears call to lessen chicken restrictions

The Soldotna City Council this month heard from people calling for a… Continue reading

Mount Spurr, raised to Advisory on the Volcano Alert Level, can be seen in yellow northwest of the Kenai Peninsula. (Map courtesy Alaska Volcano Observatory/U.S. Department of the Interior)
Spurr activity ‘declined slightly’

If an eruption were to occur, there would be noticeable indicators that may provide days to weeks of additional warning.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche delivers a borough update to the joint Kenai and Soldotna Chambers of Commerce in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Micciche pushes mill rate decrease, presses state to boost education funding

Borough Mayor Peter Micciche delivered an update to the joint Kenai and Soldotna Chambers of Commerce on Wednesday.

Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion
SPITwSPOTS employees speak to an attendee of the Kenai Peninsula Job and Career Fair in Kenai on Wednesday.
Job fair gathers together employers, job seekers

“That face-to-face has kind of been missing for a lot of people.”

A poster in the Native and Rural Student Center at the University of Alaska Southeast reads “Alaska is diverse, and so are our educators.” (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
University of Alaska holds virtual town hall to address fear and stress in changing federal landscape

Students, faculty and staff ask about protecting international students, Alaska Native programs.

Most Read