Driver caught after chase
SUMMIT TWP — A suspected drugged driver was arrested early Thursday after he allegedly led state police on a chase that reached speeds of more than 100 mph.
The driver, Cody J. Rose, 25, of Winfield Township, eventually crashed, but he ran from the vehicle, authorities said.
Police said he struggled with troopers after they caught him, and he later allegedly admitted he had used cocaine.
District Judge William Fullerton arraigned Rose on a felony charge of fleeing or attempting to elude police, misdemeanor charges of driving under the influence of a controlled substance, resisting arrest and possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia.
He also was cited for 12 traffic violations. He is in the Butler County Prison in lieu of $50,0000 bail.
Troopers first spotted a Honda CRV with a faulty headlight on Route 356 near Burtner Road in Summit Township after the driver passed them.
When the troopers tried to make a traffic stop, according to charging documents, the unknown driver sped away, traveling north on Route 356 and subsequently passing another vehicle on a turn.
It was not immediately known if the driver momentarily got away, but documents noted that police later reported seeing the SUV on Morton Avenue in Butler.
Police said the driver ran a stop sign, turned onto Center Avenue around 12:20 a.m. and eventually traveled back onto Route 356.
“While traveling on (Route 356),” according to Trooper Francis Walters' affidavit, “the SUV traveled at speeds in excess of 100 mph.”
The driver, later identified as Rose, made two more dangerous passes, police said, and at some point he turned onto Sarver Road and then onto Lardintown Road in Clinton Township, where he apparently lost control of the vehicle.
The SUV went off the road and struck a parked truck and a bird feeder. Rose got out of the vehicle and allegedly ran behind a shed.
Troopers said that after they caught him, he briefly resisted their efforts to place him in handcuffs.
“Rose informed me that he had cocaine in his pocket, which was why he 'freaked out and ran,' ” the affidavit said. “Rose also admitted to using cocaine.”
Police said they also found a container with marijuana residue and other contraband in the vehicle.
