Pursuit damages three Phillips Co. Sheriff patrol cars

On Sunday, March 22, at approximately 12:01 p.m. the Phillips County Sheriff's Office was advised of an active pursuit of a stolen Subaru SUV in Logan County. The vehicle was reported on Highway 6 heading eastbound towards Phillips County at a high rate of speed with a juvenile male driver and a juvenile female passenger. The driver of the vehicle was wanted for assault and theft of a motor vehicle in Fort Collins. Due to the serious nature of his offenses and the extreme risk to public safety, the Phillips County Sheriff's Office continued the vehicle pursuit as it entered Phillips County.

During the pursuit, the vehicle was traveling in excess of 115 miles per hour, heading eastbound towards the Town of Paoli. At approximately County Road 11, the driver of the vehicle intentionally targeted deputies in their vehicles in an attempt to flee. The driver struck one patrol vehicle at approximately 80 miles per hour resulting in a total loss of the vehicle. The deputy was evaluated at Melissa Memorial Hospital for minor injuries.

As the vehicle continued eastbound, the driver again targeted two other deputies, striking both cars in attempt to spin the patrol vehicles off the roadway. The ramming of the vehicles resulted in significant damage to both patrol cars. Fortunately, neither deputy suffered injuries as a result of the crashes. The vehicle continued eastbound toward Holyoke, where an attempt to deploy stop sticks was unsuccessful. The vehicle continued through Holyoke at a high rate of speed and made its way to the Colorado/Nebraska state line.

Once across the State line, the Chase County Sheriff's Office continued the pursuit of the vehicle as it continued at a high rate of speed through Imperial and Wauneta in Nebraska. In an attempt to flee, the vehicle crossed a set of railroad tracks and suffered further damage. The damaged suffered in the crashes and from crossing the railroad tracks caused the vehicle to become disabled. At that time, both the driver and the passenger were taken into custody by the Chase County Sheriff's Office and subsequently turned over to the Phillips County Sheriff's Office.

The juvenile male is charged with three counts of first degree assault on a peace officer, four counts of reckless endangerment, eluding and reckless driving. He was transported to Platte Valley Youth Services in Greeley until a detention hearing is completed.