LANE
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A Columbus man could be facing years in prison following a high-speed chase through multiple counties that eventually ended when a Madison County K-9 unit was deployed.
The Union County Grand Jury has indicted Solomon C. Lane, 40, of Columbus. Lane is charged with one count each of failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer, possession of drugs, forgery, operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse or a combination of them and illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia.
According to Union County Prosecutor Dave Phillips, at about 11:50 a.m. Dec. 11, Lane was traveling east on Route 161 when Sgt. Stacy Stidham of the Ohio State Highway Patrol, who was traveling west, saw his car. The officer turned around and pulled the vehicle over.
Stidham said Lane was not wearing a seatbelt and the vehicle had no front license plate.
“She just stopped him and was talking to him about these offenses,” Phillips said.
He said that as the officer talked to Lane, he began to raise some red flags.
“His statements were a bit inconsistent and unusual and he remained very nervous,” Phillips said. “People obviously get nervous anytime they are stopped by the highway patrol officers. (They) know that, but he was extremely, extremely nervous, especially given that the traffic violations were relatively minor.”
During the interaction, Stidham asked the man for his driver’s license and Lane gave her a California license with the name Raymond Botello.
“Based on the characteristics of the license she was given, she felt it was bogus,” Phillips said.
Stidham decided to go back to her cruiser and call for backup.
“At that point, Mr. Lane allegedly fled,” Phillips said.
He said Lane led the officer on a nearly 15 minute chase, with speeds reaching more than 110 miles per hour.
“As pursuits, go, this was a rather lengthy pursuit,” Phillips said.
He said the vehicles were mostly on back roads, but went through “some school zones.”
He said Lane allegedly swerved on the road multiple times, several times forcing other motorists to get out of their lane to avoid him.
Eventually the car got to U.S. 42 and eventually to the Der Dutchman restaurant in the Madison County side of Plain City.
Lane looped through the restaurant’s parking lot several times.
“Because of the parking lot design and traffic and people coming in and out of the restaurant, the trooper lost sight of the vehicle,” Phillips said.
Stidham and her supervisor decided to terminate the chase because it was creating a risk to the public at the restaurant and on the roads.
While the chase ended, Stidham and other law enforcement officials stayed in the area.
Deputy Jon Lisska, the K-9 officer for the Madison County Sheriff’s office, spotted Lane away from his vehicle in the restaurant parking lot. Lisska spoke to Lane and told him to stop.
“Because he did not stop when ordered to do so, the canine was deployed,” Phillips said. “He was taken down by the canine and was arrested.”
Once law enforcement officials learned Lane’s identity, they also learned he was wanted on drug charges in Muskingum County, “which explains the flight,” Phillips said. Investigators also learned that in 2008, Lane was convicted of failure to comply as well as illegal processing of drug documents in Green County.
When Lane’s car was searched, officers found the sedative and anxiety drug Lorazepam.
Additionally, Phillips said that based on his behavior, “the sergeant felt he was under the influence of drugs.”
The prosecutor said television programs and sometime even live news coverage make high-speed chases seem glamorous to the public.
“When someone has a pursuit like this, they put a lot of people at risk — they put the officer at risk, they put motorists at risk, in this case he put people going into Der Dutchman at risk, and they put themselves at risk,” Phillips said.
Lane is set to be arraigned later this month. Bond has been set at $20,000, but he is also being held at Tri-County Regional Jail on the warrant out of Muskingum County. If convicted on all counts, Lane could face more than seven years in prison.