CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. — Police in Charles Town say a car chase started with a red light violation and ended with two Maryland men facing charges.
It happened January 9th just before 9 p.m. An officer attempted to pull a driver over after a red light violation on US Route 340 in the area of the John Adam Link Bridge.
The driver sped off and turned on to Flowing Springs Road, passing vehicles on a double yellow line.
In the area of Shenandoah Junction Road, the vehicle struck an assisting Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office unit before striking a utility pole.
The driver and a passenger fled on foot but were taken into custody after a brief foot pursuit.
The driver, Rodney Andre Petitt, age 26, of Baltimore, Maryland, has been charged with the felony offense of fleeing in a vehicle with reckless indifference and the misdemeanor offenses of fleeing on foot, improper registration, no operator’s license, two counts of failure to obey traffic signal, and two counts of improper passing. He was arraigned in Jefferson County Magistrate Court and released after posting $10,000 bond.
The passenger, Derrell Samuel Coakley, age 25, of Dundalk, Maryland, was charged with the misdemeanor offense of fleeing on foot. He was arraigned in Jefferson County Magistrate Court and released after posting a $2,000 bond.
All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
