MAN SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS AND FOUR MONTHS IN PRISON FOR RAMMING STOLEN VEHICLE INTO CHP PATROL CAR TWICE DURING PURSUIT

Case # 18HF0174

Date: March 12, 2018

MAN SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS AND FOUR MONTHS IN PRISON FOR RAMMING STOLEN VEHICLE INTO CHP PATROL CAR TWICE DURING HIGH-SPEED CHASE IN DANA POINT

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was sentenced today to six years and four months in state prison for ramming a stolen vehicle into a California Highway Patrol (CHP) car twice during a high-speed chase in Dana Point.

Defendant	Charges	Sentence (Court Offer)
Charles Lawson, 29	Pleaded guilty today to the following felony counts: (2) Aggravated assault on a peace officer Evading while driving recklessly Unlawful taking of a vehicle	Six years and four months in state prison

 Circumstances of the Case

• At approximately at 1:20 a.m. on Jan. 28, 2018, Lawson drove a 2014 Ford Flex that had been stolen in the city of San Diego on Jan. 27, 2018.
• The defendant recklessly drove the stolen vehicle to evade arrest and lead CHP officers on a high-speed chase through Dana Point at speeds in excess of 80 mph.
• Lawson rammed the stolen vehicle into a patrol car, which knocked Officer Doe 1 back against the patrol car.
• The defendant rammed the patrol car another time, reversed the vehicle, and accelerated toward Officer Doe 2 before fleeing the scene.
• Later that same day, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, who investigated this case, located and arrested Lawson at a nearby hotel.

Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Jason Baez, Special Prosecutions Unit