A Sedona-Oak Creek school board member was arrested on a variety of charges including resisting arrest, stemming from what she says is an unknown medical condition.

On May 17, Roberta “Bobbie” Surber, 55, was arrested on two counts of driving with a suspended or revoked license, resisting arrest — engaging in passive resistance, possession of a cancelled/fictitious license and third-degree criminal trespassing.

Surber, who briefly addressed the arrest during the Tuesday, June 7, school board meeting, said it originated from her failure to pay a fine she received last year for lack of vehicle insurance.

According to a Sedona Police Department report, at 9:40 p.m. an officer observed a vehicle whose driver, Surber, was possibly involved in a civil matter the day prior. It was at that time he learned that Surber’s license had been suspended but she had left the scene on May 16 before he could address it with her.

Once he spotted her vehicle, he followed her as she pulled into the parking lot of the Olde Sedona Bar and Grill, drove around the building and exited onto State Route 89A. The officer followed her as she again entered the same parking lot and again exited. The officer wrote in his report that this behavior was “very odd and not that of a reasonable, non-influenced driver.”

Surber then pulled into the parking lot of the nearby Hampton Inn. The report states the officer pulled into the same parking lot, exited his vehicle, identified himself and asked if her name was Roberta. She looked at him and denied being Roberta and said she didn’t know what he was talking about when he referenced the incident the day prior. The officer ran the license plate, which came back to Surber.

Surber walked into the hotel lobby and proceeded to enter the restroom. At that point a second officer was called to the scene. While in the restroom, the officer reported hearing Surber talking on the phone but couldn’t hear the conversation. The officers knocked on the door several times over the next two hours asking to talk to her. During that time, the manager of the hotel requested that she be trespassed from the property since she was not a guest.

Surber’s husband, Daniel, arrived at the hotel and told officers that Surber had called and told him that she was “being stalked and harassed by fake police officers and that she was afraid for her life.”

The officer reported telling Surber that her license had been suspended. She questioned that and slid her license under the bathroom door, attempting to prove him wrong. A short time later Surber cracked the door open and peeked out at which point the officer grabbed the door. Surber told the officer to leave, then allegedly lifted her dress then sat back on the toilet saying she wasn’t finished. The officer said she needed to “stop playing games” and exit the bathroom.

She asked for her husband to come into the bathroom, at which point she told him that the officer had approached her from behind in the dark with both dark clothing and vehicle, called her by a name she hasn’t gone by in 30 years and was afraid to leave with the officers.

At that point Surber said she needed medical attention so an ambulance was called to the scene and she was transported to the Sedona Medical Center for further evaluation. After being treated, the officer was informed that Surber was ready to be released into his custody. Once the officer arrived, Surber then allegedly began to cling onto the hospital bed rail and stated, “He’s going to kill me. Don’t let him take me, he’s going to kill and rape me.”

The officer reportedly grabbed her left wrist, pulled it from the bed and placed a handcuff on it. Hospital staff then assisted in getting her right hand free from her grip and the officer placed it in handcuffs as well.

She was booked into the Yavapai County Detention Center in Camp Verde at 1:54 a.m.

In a statement to the Sedona Red Rock News, Surber wrote, “I believe this is most people’s worst nightmare that something in their personal lives would make front-page coverage in the newspaper. Knowing the pain this will cause my family and friends that love and care about me is the worst part.”

She went on to write, “There is more to this story than this young officer’s report including extenuating circumstances with my health. I now must follow legal advice and wait my turn to share my side of the story.

“I have led my life and taught my children that all we can do in life is take personal responsibility for our choices and actions. If I had paid a simple ticket, none of this would have happened.”

In an phone interview, Surber went into more detail in regard to referencing her health. She said that a few weeks prior to the arrest, she was on a flight and became ill. She had a metallic taste in her mouth and then began to lose control of her body. Two nurses on the plane assisted as she experienced a seizure for the first time in her life. She was taken off the plane by medical personal and transported to an Atlanta area hospital where doctors failed to find a reason for the seizure.

“I was praying that was a one-time thing,” she said, noting that she’s since sought treatment from physicians and a counselor. “But on the night of the arrest I was experiencing the same symptoms. I knew I was going down fast.

“I have no record of erratic behavior. There is nothing in my past that has lent itself to this type of erratic behavior. I don’t understand it all myself — it’s very confusing. My brain is working hard to wrap itself around all of this. I’m not trying to make excuses but clearly there is something going on.”