A suspected drunken driver dragged a state trooper about 100 feet this morning as he fled a traffic stop, then led the trooper on a 100 mph chase that ended in a crash.
The driver, Jefferey Casey, 35, of Golden, was taken to St. Anthony Central Hospital with serious injuries, said Trooper David Hall, a Colorado State Patrol spokesman.
The incident started at about 2 a.m. near the intersection of West 6th and West Colfax Avenues.
Hall said Trooper Bradley Fox pulled over a 1987 Jeep Cherokee and asked the driver if he would submit to a roadside sobriety test. The driver said yes and Fox went back to his patrol vehicle to radio information to a dispatcher and to run background checks on the Jeep and Casey.
When Fox went back to the Jeep about 10 minutes later, Casey refused to get out of the vehicle, Hall said.
Investigators did not say whether Fox’s arm got caught up on the Jeep somehow or whether Casey grabbed the trooper’s arm.
Casey drove off and dragged Fox about 100 feet, Hall said. Fox suffered minor injuries but got back to his patrol car and pursued Casey.
Speeds during the chase, which lasted about 10 minutes, hit 100 mph.
Near the intersection of West Colfax Avenue and Owens Street in Lakewood Fox’s patrol car and the Jeep clipped each other and the Jeep crashed into vehicles parked in a used car lot, Hall said. The Jeep rolled and Casey had to be cut out of the SUV by emergency responders.
Fox, who was wearing a seat belt, was not injured further.
He has been with the state patrol since 1999 and serves out of the Golden office.
Casey was not wearing a seat-belt, Hall said.
The crash is being investigated by the Lakewood Police Department and the state patrol expects to file charges against Casey for fleeing the original stop and possibly for driving under the influence, Hall said.
No one else was injured during the chase.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
