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Driver, Passenger Arrested After Pinellas Chase

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TBO.com staff

Published: June 4, 2008

  Warren Hawkins III

  Rhonda Wheeler

ST. PETERSBURG - Deputies arrested a man and woman Wednesday after the duo led them on car chase through Pinellas County.

The chase started about 5:12 p.m. when the deputy tried to stop a speeding car on Carillon Parkway. Warren Hawkins III, 28, the driver of the 1994 Lincoln Mark VIII, kept going and the deputy radioed other patrol units in the area, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office said.

A sergeant heard the transmission and got out of his car at the intersection of Roosevelt Boulevard and Lake Carillon Drive, where he tried to prevent a potential crash by stopping traffic at the busy intersection, the sheriff's office said.

According to deputies, this is what happened next:

The Lincoln driven by Hawkins approached the sergeant at the intersection, but the car did not stop. The sergeant had to run to avoid being struck, then got into his patrol car and began chasing the Lincoln. He saw a female passenger waving her arms as if signaling for help.

When the pursuit continued on Gandy Boulevard, the Lincoln used the emergency lanes to pass cars stalled during rush hour traffic. As the Lincoln headed toward Grand Avenue, Hawkins lost control of the car, sideswiped a sedan, struck two more cars, then overturned twice.

After the crash, Hawkins fled on foot, but deputies used Tasers to subdue him. Hawkins, of 618 30th Ave. S., St. Petersburg, was charged with reckless driving, driving with a suspended or revoked license, aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, aggravated fleeing and eluding, false imprisonment, leaving the scene of a crash and possession of marijuana.

The passenger, Rhonda Wheeler, 32, told deputies that during the pursuit, she repeatedly asked Hawkins to let her out of the car.

Deputies said Wheeler tried to toss out a bag of crack cocaine after the crash. She was arrested on one count of possession of cocaine and two counts of violation of probation.

Hawkins suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, and he was taken by ambulance to Bayfront Medical Center. Wheeler was also taken to Bayfront Medical Center as a precaution before she was booked at Pinellas County Jail.

No other drivers were injured in the crashes.

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