Driver gets away after leading deputies through a 40 minute car chase

JACKSON COUNTY, Ore.— Deputies from the Jackson County Sheriffs Office are looking for a male suspect after he sent police officers on a wild car chase this weekend.

The chase began in Shady Cove Saturday night around 10:40 P.M. Sgt. Julie Denney, PIO for Jackson County Sheriffs Officer, says officers attempted to stop a white 1999 Toyota 4Runner, but when officers approached the vehicle, the driver took off.

Officers chased after the driver through Shady Cove, Eagle Point, Central Point, Medford, Phoenix, Talent and Ashland.

Agencies from each city helped in the effort to stop the vehicle.

Officers used spike strips at least two times and attempted to use spike strips two other times to stop the driver. The vehicle lost his two front tires from the strips but continued driving.

Deputies say they had to stop and restart the chase multiple times due to safety issues. For this reason, that made it difficult for officers to catch the driver.

The chase ended when the driver hit a parked car in Ashland and fled the scene, however officers were able to arrest the female passenger.

Sgt. Denney says they attempted to use a K9 to find the male driver but they were unsuccessful because of the amount of people in the area.

Sgt. Denney says they don’t have many details about the driver but they’re looking for white male.

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Blakely McHugh is co-anchor of NBC5 News at Sunrise and spokesperson for In This Together, a suicide prevention initiative. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Blakely is a native of San Diego, CA. Blakely is excited to be in southern Oregon, a place that gets all the seasons and has similar temperatures to Arizona in the summer! When she’s not at work, you can find her relaxing at home watching TV and cuddling with her cat, Dallas. She also enjoys trying new places to eat and exploring the outdoors. Blakely loves meeting new people so if you see her out and about, say “hi!”
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