Car pursue on snowy street completes in crash

• By JUSTIN CRIADO, Senior Staff Writer
• May 23, 2017

A screen grab from a cell phone movie obtained by the Daily Planet shows the Subaru Legacy that led local police on a pursue along Colorado Avenue last Wednesday evening. The vehicle came to a stop at the bike rack outside of The Butcher and The Baker. (Courtesy photo)

A routine welfare call turned chaotic as a female driver led cops on a pursue along Colorado Avenue last week.

The May seventeen incident occurred inbetween 9-10 p.m., ending when the driver lost control of her vehicle in the snow, striking a bike rack outside of The Butcher and The Baker eatery. Two Telluride Marshal’s Department officers cuffed the woman on the sidewalk outside of the shop, according to a cell phone movie obtained by the Daily Planet. There were no injuries reported.

Telluride Town Marshal Jim Kolar said the woman was taken into protective custody that night, but was later released. No charges had been filed as of press time Tuesday, but Kolar said charges would be forthcoming by the end of this week.

The female is a Montrose resident, but her identity was not instantly available for publication since formal charges hadn’t been filed, Kolar said. He plans to meet Wednesday afternoon with Sergeant Jay Wilson and two other officers who dealt with the incident.

“When the officers get back to work this week, we’re looking at possibly citing her with reckless endangerment and child manhandle,” Kolar said.

An 11-year-old juvenile, who was in the car during the pursue, was securely liquidated from the vehicle by a Telluride Emergency Medical Service official. Kolar explained that a family member couldn’t be found, so the juvenile was taken in by San Miguel County Social Services. The juvenile is presently staying with a foster family.

Prior to the pursue, the Marshal’s Department received a call from a third party about a woman parked on the bike path outside of the Telluride Middle/High School. The driver asked for help, however, it’s unclear of the main reason why, Kolar said.

“We got called over to the high school on a female that was having some type of problem, wanting some assistance,” he said.

By the time officers arrived, the driver was parked in the high school lot, but refused to talk to a masculine officer.

“She wished to speak with a female deputy so we asked the Sheriff’s Office to send a female over,” Kolar said. “In the meantime, something happened while she was talking with (the caller), who lives in the neighborhood over there, and (the driver) backed up and took off.”

Kolar added the driver struck a police car as she backed out. She then drove onto Colorado Avenue, headed east toward town.

Witnesses of the pursue and ensuing incident on the sidewalk explained that the driver was in the wrong lane as she approached Willow Street. There was a lot of snow on the streets from a storm earlier in the evening.

“We could see (the driver) hauling booty on this side of the road,” said a local business holder who wished to remain anonymous. “There were two or three cop cars and an ambulance. As (the driver) began getting closer my friend said ‘Get in the car, she’s going to hit us.’ That’s when (the driver) attempted to do a U-turn, but ended up doing a figure eight.”

The business proprietor said the vehicle struck several parked cars after getting turned around and proceeding back the way it came.

“She bounced off of a duo cars inbetween here and Butcher and Baker, and landed in front of the store,’’ the witness said.

The proprietor added that since it was nighttime, there was no oncoming traffic.

“It could have been way worse,” the business possessor said.

Kolar said both the driver and pursuing authorities had to dodge vehicles and pedestrians during the pursue.

Butcher and Baker employee Josh Stump said that workers were in the process of cleaning up after closing time when a blur of vehicles and flashing lights caught everyone’s attention.

“We were back there cleaning and one of the front-of-the-house guys was like ‘Car pursue! Car pursue!,’” he said.

Stump stood on the store’s steps and shot some cell phone footage after the vehicle came to a stop.

On the movie provided by Stump, police can be heard yelling, “Show me your forearms!” before the woman is extracted from the driver’s seat and manacled on the sidewalk by two officers.

Stump added that when officers approached the vehicle, at least one had a overwhelm gun drawn, however, it wasn’t discharged during the incident. In the three different movies the Planet obtained from numerous sources, officers could not be seen with any sort of drawn weapon.

Sobs and yelps from the hysterical juvenile included rants about being frightened during the pursue, while an emergency official attempted to keep the youth silent.

The vehicle, a navy blue Subaru Legacy, was still parked along the curb outside of Butcher and Baker on Tuesday. Harm to the passenger’s side headlight and bumper are visible, while there are marks on the fender and driver’s side front panel.

Several large garbage bags were tied to the roof rack with clear, rubber tubing. Contents that can be seen inwards the vehicle include clothing, individual items, file folders and school supplies.

Kolar said the woman was not tested for drugs or alcohol.

“We didn’t know what her problem was or why she was seeking some type of assistance, or why she drove away from the contact before the female sheriff’s deputy got on scene,” he said.

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