Athens police chase that nearly injured three officers ends in Colbert woman's arrest
Athens-Clarke police reported Wednesday that three officers were endangered during a vehicle pursuit Monday night that ended when officers were able to forcibly pin the vehicle between two patrol units.
The driver, a 29-year-old Colbert woman, was arrested on a drunk driving charge, along with eight felonies including three counts of aggravated assault and nine traffic violations, including aggressive driving.
The chase, which went for about 4 miles, began shortly after 9 p.m. when a police detective at the Valero station on U.S. Highway 29 called for a patrol unit after seeing a suspicious Dodge Caravan parked behind the station, according to police.
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As an officer responded, he reported the van came out from the behind the store at a high speed without using its headlights and was traveling head-on into his patrol car. The officer reported he slammed on his brakes and the van veered at the last second to avoid a crash.
A pursuit began as the van fled down Harve Mathis Road to Danielsville Road and south into Athens. But at Nowhere Road, an officer put down a spike strip, which flattened the passenger side tire of the van, according to the report.
The van continued south once going over a concrete median, then slowing to a stop, police said. An officer exited his unit and approached the van, which suddenly "lurched forward” and nearly hit the officer.
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“Had the lieutenant not dove out of the way, it’s very likely he would have been struck by the fleeing vehicle,” officer Mikal Jones reported.
Another officer closed in and the van rammed the side of this officer's cruiser, but he was able to maneuver in front of the van and another cruiser approached from the rear and pinned the van between the units, according to the report.
The driver kept accelerating the engine and shifting gears in an attempt to escape, but one officer knocked out a window, then used his stun gun to subdue the woman, police said. A passenger in the van, a 57-year-old Athens man, was not charged.
The suspect remained Wednesday in the Athens-Clarke County Jail awaiting a bond hearing.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Colbert woman charged with vehicle assault on officers in Athens chase
