Police say a Juneau man confessed to drinking half a bottle of whiskey on the same day he allegedly stole an F-150 pickup and then led officers on high-speed chase from the Lemon Creek area to North Douglas.
A Juneau grand jury indicted William Eugene Fleming, 22, on Friday on two felony charges for vehicle theft and failure to stop at the direction of an officer. Fleming led officers on a late-night chase April 30 that ended in a crash near False Outer Point in Douglas, according to a police complaint.
[Police pursue, detain erratic driver behind late-night chase.]
Juneau Police Department officer James Dooley reported that three different patrol vehicles made themselves visible to Fleming during the 10-mile chase that began on Egan Drive near Bartlett Regional Hospital, close to where onlookers first spotted Fleming swerving off the road and nearly hitting people on sidewalks, according to a press release by JPD Sgt. Krag Campbell.
Fleming’s speed reached 75 mph at times during the chase in areas where the posted speed limit was 45 mph, police said.
[To read the police complaint, scroll through images above.]
When officers approached Fleming inside the stalled vehicle after it became stuck in a ditch, Fleming did not comply with officers and continued to press his accelerator, though the vehicle did not move, Dooley wrote in the police complaint. Officers forcibly removed Fleming from the truck and took him to BRH. He was not immediately charged because of other possible medical needs at the time, JPD Deputy Chief Ed Mercer told the Empire earlier.
The truck’s owner later told police the truck and an attached trailer were stolen from a construction site earlier that day in Lemon Creek.
Fleming is currently facing charges in Alaska for a harassment and criminal mischief, according to court documents. Both alleged offenses occurred in Anchorage. He also pleaded no contest to operating a vehicle under the influence on March 20, 2015, also in Anchorage.
If convicted for the felonies related to the police chase, Fleming faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $50,000 for each offense.
Fleming’s first court appearance in Juneau’s Superior Court has not been scheduled yet.
Other indictments
Friday’s grand jury also indicted Kyler Jones-Chapman, 20, for an alleged sexual relationship with a 15-year-old Juneau girl that took place in January. Jones-Chapman faces a class B felony for second-degree sexual abuse of a minor, which can be punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Court records show this is Jones-Chapman’s first offense in Alaska. Jones-Chapman was 19 years old and the girl was 14 at the time of the offense, according to the charges.
More information about the case was not immediately available. Jones-Chapman is scheduled to appear before Judge Louis Menendez in Juneau’s Superior Court on May 16.
Indictments are formal accusations of illegal activity and not evidence of guilt.
• Contact reporter Paula Ann Solis at 523-2272 or paula.solis@juneauempire.com.
Related stories:
New AWARE housing helping women to find renewed independence
Photo: Drive blames brakes for upside down truck
Juneau woman honored by Alaska’s First Lady for helping fight heroin addiction
