Police: Theft suspect stole 2 police vehicles while handcuffed, survived 11 officers’ gunfire
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A man who crashed a stolen police vehicle, survived gunfire from 11 police officers and then drove off and crashed another police cruiser — all while wearing handcuffs in a hospital gown — is in no mental capacity to appear before a judge right now, his lawyer said Friday.
The chaotic chain of events involving at least five law enforcement agencies began when Gary Porter, already wanted on a felony theft warrant, was discovered passed out in a chicken coop on Monday, arrested and taken to a hospital for evaluation, police said.
Paris Police Chief Mike Dailey then took him to jail, and had stepped out of the pickup truck to escort him inside when Porter somehow slipped his handcuffs from behind his back, moved into the driver’s seat and drove off. The chief jumped onto the truck’s running board to try to stop him, but was thrown to the ground, authorities said.
A chase ensued, joined by officers from Norway, Oxford and Paris, sheriff’s deputies and state police in a mostly rural part of Maine about 48 miles from Portland, police said. They eventually deployed spike mats that blew the tires and caused Porter to crash into a ditch.
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A bystander’s video captured at least part of the gunfire at that point: With his hands still in cuffs, Porter circles around the truck and jumps into another police vehicle in full view of officers. Shots ring out as he climbs into the second cruiser with his back to police and takes off again. The video shows him swerving and driving away.
Authorities said he crashed again a short distance from there. By the end, 11 officers ultimately fired their weapons, and Porter was struck once by an officer’s bullet. Police didn’t say that any officers were hit.
Maine State Police spokesperson Shannon Moss said initially, without providing more detail, that “officers confronted Porter and gunfire was exchanged.” That was in a statement on behalf of all of the law enforcement departments involved.
But the departments involved didn’t release key details of the confrontation, including whether Porter obtained a weapon or fired it. They also didn’t release information about the extent of his injuries. The Office of the Maine Attorney General said Friday that Porter was shot, treated and released from a hospital.
Porter’s initial court appearance on two counts of theft, assault on a police officer, escaping custody, eluding police and violation of bail was set for Wednesday, by video conference from the Cumberland County Jail, but his defense said the medication he was given made him mumble and unable to keep his eyes open. He had another opportunity on Friday, but his attorney Justin Leary, said he still wasn’t fit to go before a judge.
“I don’t think he’s mentally equipped right now to go forward,” Leary said. A mental examination was requested and Porter was scheduled to return to court on May 15.
The bystander who recorded the video of the roadside confrontation in Paris, Linda Marie Mercer, said she had arrived on the scene to see a truck in the ditch and numerous police vehicles alongside it. She said she heard gunfire and saw officers shooting into the truck. She thought the person in the truck might have been killed — the officers appeared to relax.
But the video shows what happened next: Porter, still cuffed and in a white hospital gown, ignored shouts of “put your hands up!” and climbed into an SUV that had been left with its driver’s door wide open. More bullets flew as he drove away.
Eleven officers are on administrative leave following the shooting, authorities said. It was the largest number of police officers to discharge their guns in a single incident in recent memory in the state, said Brian MacMaster, a long-time investigator for the attorney general’s office, who’s now retired after a career that began in 1969.
It’s standard practice for officers to be placed on administrative leave after using deadly force in Maine. Officers are generally off duty for about a month before being evaluated and allowed to return, MacMaster said.
Florida man crashes stolen police car, takes another one during wild pursuit
Suspect Xavier Javern Cummings led authorities on a chase in two stolen police vehicles, authorities said.
Florida man crashes two stolen police cars in chase across multiple counties
A Florida man stole two police cruisers and led officials on a multi-county chase that ended with his arrest Thursday, authorities said.
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Xavier Javern Cummings, 33, remained in jail with no bond Friday after he was arrested on suspicion of burglary, eluding law enforcement, possession of a firearm by a felon, firearm theft, motor vehicle theft, and driving with a suspended license, according to inmate records.
It’s not clear if Cummings has a lawyer. The public defender for the area did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday evening.
The chase started when Cocoa, Florida, police were called to a disturbance at a hotel and someone took off on a patrol sedan, NBC affiliate WESH of Orlando reported.
The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement it joined a northbound chase. One of the Volusia cruisers pushed the sedan off Interstate 95, where it became stuck in the woods, the office said.
But the suspect got into another Cocoa unit, an SUV, and drove north again, the sheriff’s office said.
“He takes a large container of police-issued mace with him,” Volusia Sheriff Michael J. Chitwood told WESH. “And now we continue the chase for another probably 8 or 10 miles.”
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Police radio traffic revealed there was concern a police gun was in the vehicle.
“After units along I-95 successfully deployed stop sticks, the suspect again ran off the highway and into a muddy median around the 258 mile marker,” the Volusia office said in its statement.
It was there that Cummings was captured, authorities said.
Man steals one cop car, then steals another cop car in bid to escape, Volusia sheriff says
The Daytona Beach News-Journal
A man accused of stealing a Cocoa police car on Thursday was forced off Interstate 95 and into some woods in Volusia County, authorities said.
But he temporarily got away — by stealing a second Cocoa police vehicle.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood and Division Chief Brian Henderson were the first to arrive after the man went off the road in the second stolen police vehicle. Chitwood said that while some will question how the man managed to swipe two police cars, the situation ended with no injuries.Recent law enforcement news: Police: Man runs stop sign, drags police officers during Daytona Beach traffic stopMore: 8th pedestrian death in Volusia in 2021: Woman hit and killed by vehicle in Holly Hill
“Nobody got hurt. Nobody got killed. Every police officer and deputy went home safe,” Chitwood said in a phone interview. “The bad guy went to jail safe. And no innocent person got hurt.”
The person behind the wheel of each stolen police vehicle was identified as a 33-year-old man, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office. The News-Journal is not publishing the man’s name because law enforcement raised questions about his mental health.
The man was charged with armed burglary of a conveyance; escape, fleeing or attempting to elude law enforcement; two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; two counts of grand theft firearm; two counts of grand theft motor vehicle; and driving while license suspended (habitual).
Cocoa Police Public Information Officer Yvonne Martinez said in a phone interview Friday that the situation began on State Road 520 around Cox Road in Brevard County near Cocoa. The city of Cocoa got a call about 3:45 p.m. about a man who was acting strangely and stepping in and out of traffic. As police talked to him, the man ran to a police car and drove off.
She said the department is going to review policy and see if any were violated or any policies needed to be changed. She said she did not know what the policy was on leaving cars running or with doors unlocked.
She added that the department’s policy calls for pursuits in high-risk crimes.
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“We typically don’t engage in pursuit unless it’s a high-risk felony,” Martinez said. And, in this particular case, he took a police car with arms in it so that would be considered high risk.”
The man was heading north on I-95 about 4:15 p.m. Thursday when Volusia County sheriff’s deputies were alerted, said spokesman Andrew Gant in an email.
A pursuing police officer forced the stolen cruiser off the highway around the 252 mile marker where it crashed and became stuck in some woods, according to video from Volusia County Sheriff’s Office helicopter.
Law enforcement officers gathered with shields and guns drawn and a police dog at the ready as they approached the stuck police vehicle thinking that the man was still inside it, according to a video. They used a pickup to block the car in.
Man steals second police car to escape
But as law enforcement neared the car, the man ran out of the woods and jumped into another Cocoa police SUV, Chitwood said and a video showed. Officers ran after him with one officer getting as close as standing right at the open driver’s door of the police SUV after the suspect hopped inside, according to the video.
The man again took off, driving north in the stolen Cocoa police SUV, its blue lights still flashing.
As he fled, an officer on the police radio advised “Any other vehicle dealing with him, lock your doors.”
Police blocked off the entrances to Interstate 95, shutting the highway down as commuters lined up on ramps, blocked from continuing their travels.
As the SUV crossed over Dunlawton Avenue on I-95, officers in Port Orange used stop sticks to puncture some of the SUV’s tires. The SUV then started trailing smoke.
The Cocoa police SUV continued north of Williamson Avenue overpass as police, deputies and the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office helicopter followed.
The SUV then ran off the interstate and into the median around the 258 mile marker, Gant said.
Chitwood said his biggest fear was that the suspect would go into the southbound lanes and he was relieved when the SUV ended up stuck in the median.
Chitwood was the first person to approach the stuck police SUV. Division Chief Henderson was there almost at the same time as Chitwood. More law enforcement officers quickly arrived.
This time the man didn’t get away.
Chitwood suggested the man had mental health issues and said he was yelling into the SUV’s microphone about the FBI and Homeland Security.
The sheriff added he was proud of how officers and deputies worked together. He also said he was glad no one panicked and opened fire on the suspect inside the stolen police car when it was stuck in the woods and the man appeared to be sttrying to back the vehicle out.
“We are going to get criticized ‘How could this happen’ or whatever,” Chitwood said. “You know, that’s a fair criticism. By the same token, people have to look and say you know what they didn’t shoot and kill him: No one got hurt.”
