15-year old boy leads police on high speed chase

Newly hired La Follette Police Officer Joe Hicks pursues male suspect on wheels and on foot

TOP PHOTO: The stolen vehicle was driven off a paved parking lot and into this field.

This Dodge sedan was stolen from a home on Pleasant Ridge around 3am Monday, according to La Follette Police.

LAFOLLETTE, TN (WLAF) – “Awh, I got dirt on my pants,” said La Follette Police Officer Joe Hicks as he brushed it off his navy colored uniform. It was just after 1:30pm Monday when Hicks spotted a car that had been reported stolen earlier in the day.

The pursuit ended in a field beside the church.

“It was on South Tennessee Avenue, near Seargeant’s Park, where I spotted him,” said Hicks. From there a pursuit began that eventually headed east on Central Avenue. The suspect turned left onto Myers Lane, beside Food Lion, heading toward a neighborhood where police said the suspect lives. Onlookers feared the pursuit was headed to La Follette Elementary School or Mountain View Independent Baptist Church.

No one was injured in the pursuit. LPD Officer Mallory Campbell was snapping photos of the scene.

Hicks was behind the white Dodge sedan as it veered into a field on the east side of the church. “He slammed on the breaks when he saw a barrier and bailed. That’s when I chased him on foot, caught him and placed him under arrest,” said Hicks.

The key fob had been taken Sunday night from the car while it was parked at Walmart, according to police. “They came back last night, around 3am Monday, and took the car,” said LPD Captain Charles Duff.

La Follette Police, Fire and Animal Control converged on this field before 2pm Monday.

“We took the suspect into custody, a 15-year- old juvenile,” said LPD Chief Steve Wallen. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 05/20/2024-3PM)