Published: November 03, 2009 09:11 am      

Man charged in police chase

CLINTON — A Clinton man is facing criminal charges after allegedly leading police on a chase that reached speeds of 125 miles per hour and ended in the rollover of his getaway car north of Clinton city limits Saturday afternoon.

Flemming L. Lewis, 26, made his initial court appearance this week and was charged with a felony count of eluding and a misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance.

According to a court affidavit, police attempted to make a traffic stop at 4:36 p.m. on a green Cadillac in the 400 block of 25th Avenue North. The Cadillac, reportedly driven by Lewis, lacked a front license plate.

After police activated the emergency lights and siren, Lewis fled, accelerating northbound toward 28th Avenue North, police say. The vehicle passed through the Miller Ridge apartment complex “at a high rate of speed in such a manner as to indicate a willful disregard for the safety of person and property,” according to the court affidavit.

The Cadillac ran a stop sign at 28th Avenue North and North Fourth Street, then again at 29th Avenue North and North Third Street. The vehicle then turned north on U.S. 67, accelerating to 90 miles per hour in a 35 miles per hour zone and passing northbound traffic on the right shoulder of the road, police report.

At Deer Creek Road, Lewis accelerated to 115 miles per hour in a 55 miles per hour zone, then continued to increase speed to 125 miles per hour, police said. Lewis lost control of the vehicle twice, leaving the right side of the roadway and overcorrecting across both lanes of traffic before continuing north. The Cadillac went straight on 460th Avenue, and Lewis lost control again, causing the vehicle to leave the roadway and strike an embankment before rolling onto its top.

Police removed Lewis and a passenger, Travis Moore, from the vehicle, and both were transported to Mercy North Hospital with injuries. Police said that at the hospital, police searched Lewis’ pockets and found a Hydrocodone pill.

A records check revealed that the license plate on the back of the Cadillac belonged to another vehicle, owned by Kimberly A. Baldwin.

She said Lewis, who was driving on a suspended license, took the plate off her vehicle and transferred it to the Cadillac. Baldwin also said she had given the Hydrocodone to Lewis, reports state.

According to the arrest report, Lewis was under the influence of narcotics when he was taken into custody. In addition to the eluding and drug charges, he was issued several traffic citations.

Court records show Lewis has prior drug-related convictions and is a habitual offender of driving while barred.

Lewis was released from the hospital, transported to the Clinton County Jail and held on a $5,000 bond. According to jail staff, he posted bond Monday morning and was released.