Clearlake >> A chase didn’t end when the felon attempting to evade police crashed driving at a speed double the posted limit, according to reports. After police finally did catch up to him, they found a loaded homemade firearm.
James West, 41, fled in a 1998 Volkswagen Jetta on Monday when an officer tried to pull him over for reportedly driving without his headlights on, Clearlake Sgt. Tim Hobbs said in a media release.
It was almost 2:30 a.m. when Sgt. Travis Lenz spotted West on Lakeshore Drive. The Clearlake resident allegedly sped up to about 50 mph in a 25 mph zone and turned onto Kabal Street when Lenz activated his emergency patrol lights.
West was heading east when he lost control and crashed into a parked car with enough force that it struck a second vehicle that then hit a tree, Hobbs reported.
The suspect got out of his car and ran down a footpath for another 200 yards before Lenz caught up and placed him under arrest. West reportedly had a loaded homemade zip gun in his car and matching caliber ammunition in his pockets, police stated. The makeshift firearm was located between the driver’s seat and the center console of West’s vehicle.
He was booked into the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility and faces eight charges including multiple felony weapons counts, resisting arrest, hit and run, felony evading and driving with a suspended driver’s license.
