Vehicle pursuit on I-580 into Carson City ends with one in custody
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Mon, 06/12/2023 - 2:50pm
A 43-year-old man was arrested early Monday morning following a vehicle pursuit involving the Carson City Sheriff's Office and Nevada State Police.
Jose Angel Sanchez, from Burney, Calif., was taken into custody at 6:59 a.m. in the area of I-580 and US-395. He was booked for suspicion of felony eluding, and the following misdemeanor offenses: Failure to yield to an emergency vehicle, reckless driving, two counts unlawful passing on the right, speeding over 21 mph, and unsafe lane change.
According to the booking report, a CCSO detective in an unmarked detective vehicle was traveling south on I-580 south of Bellvue exit in Washoe Valley when he observed a Jeep Cherokee driving southbound at a high rate of speed, according to the report.
The Jeep passed several vehicles and changed lanes at least twice behind the detective at a high rate of speed. The Jeep also changed lanes around other vehicles at a high rate of speed, unsafe and without using signals, the report states.
The Jeep changed lanes and drove right up to the rear of the CCSO detective's vehicle, and followed close behind the officer, who then activated his rear emergency lights to warn the Jeep, the report states.
The Jeep appeared to brake but then continued to follow close behind. The officer slowed down and changed lanes to the No. 2 travel lane. The Jeep passed the officer in the No. 1 lane, then changed to the No. 2 and began to slow.
The officer states in the report that he thought the Jeep was going to yield, instead the Jeep sped up in the No. 2 lane. The deputy radioed to dispatch that he was attempting to stop a reckless driver and the vehicle was failing to yield, the report states.
As the vehicles approached the East Lake Boulevard exit, the deputy believed the vehicle was going to exit and yield. The Jeep instead continued south and drove over Lakeview Hill on I-580 into Carson City at around 70 mph, the report states.
As the vehicle drove over Lakeview Hill, it sped up. As the Jeep encountered slower traffic it began to change lanes around the slower vehicles without signaling, weaving in and out of traffic. At times the Jeep changed lanes dangerously close to other vehicles. As the Jeep approached another group of slower vehicles around I-580 and Arrowhead Drive, the Jeep passed the vehicles on the right shoulder without slowing down, the report states.
The deputy radioed to dispatch that he was canceling the pursuit and turned off his emergency lights. Dispatch advised that they had notified Nevada State Police. As the Jeep approached the I-580/College Parkway area, the deputy saw the Jeep again pass several cars on the right shoulder without slowing down. The deputy lost sight of the Jeep as it sped south on I-580 toward the Highway 50 exit area.
As the highway straightened out, the officer saw the Jeep still driving south passing the area of the Highway 50 exit. The Jeep was traveling around 100 mph and its hazard lights were flashing. The officer saw a marked Nevada State Police patrol vehicle enter the freeway at Fairview. The vehicle followed the Jeep and activated its emergency lights. The Jeep did not stop and continued south on I-580.
The NSP vehicle turned off its lights and pulled to the shoulder and stopped. The CCSO detective stopped with the trooper who stated he was also not going to pursue the Jeep any further. While the CCSO detective was speaking with the trooper, he was advised the Jeep had been stopped in traffic by other NSP Troopers, the report states.
With the suspect detained, by NSP officers and CCSO deputies began their investigation, where field sobriety test began and it was of the opinion that of a CCSO deputy the man was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
The man spoke with officers, saying he was afraid of the police, that he had mental health issues, and would not stop for the police. He spoke of people chasing him and of the dosages of psychiatric medicines he was prescribed.
He was read his Miranda warning and said he didn't want to talk. He was booked for eluding a police officer, failure to yield to a police officer, reckless driving, 2 counts of unlawful passing on the right, unsafe lane change and speeding over 21 mph. Bail: $5,000.
— All information for the crime log (unless otherwise noted) comes from the arrest reports supplied by the Carson City Sheriff's Office, and is considered by law to be public information. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The policy of Carson Now is to name anyone who is arrested for a felony offense.
