EXCLUSIVE: Shenandoah PD engages felon in high-speed pursuit, arrests fugitive

THE WOODLANDS, TX – Officers in the Shenandoah Police Department found themselves in a high-speed chase through The Woodlands and Spring and into Houston, against a woman charged with multiple felony counts. Woodlands Online sat down for an exclusive interview with two officers of Shenandoah PD: Lt. Joel Gordon, CID - Special Services; and Sgt. C. Pullen, who was the first officer involved in the incident.

During Wednesday lunchtime this week, one of the local Shenandoah banks located on Research Forest Blvd. near Interstate 45 alerted authorities that a woman was attempting to cash a stolen check using a stolen credit card and stolen ID card. Bank officials alerted Shenandoah PD that they were ‘dragging out’ the transaction to give authorities time to come on scene.

Sgt. Pullen answered the call and proceeded to the bank parking lot. In the few minutes between the initial call and her arrival on scene, the suspect had left the bank and gotten into a car, preparing to leave the premises.

“I pulled up right as she was leaving,” she said. “The suspect was driving a Chevrolet Malibu with no front plate. I noted the driver matched the description of the suspect and based on that – plus the lack of license plate on the vehicle – I initiated a traffic stop right at 12:29 p.m. That’s when things literally took off.”

The suspect, who was later identified as Sara Elizabeth Davis, 43, of Lake Worth, Florida, ignored the lights of Sgt. Pullen’s police vehicle, and instead of stopping commenced speeding out of the parking lot, getting on to I-45 and heading south. Sgt. Pullen gave chase as she radioed for backup. Almost immediately, the chase was joined by Shenandoah PD Office C.J. Duenas and his K9 partner Maui. The word quickly spread between law enforcement, and the chase was quickly joined by officers from Oak Ridge North Police Department and Montgomery County Pct. 3 Constable Ryan Gable’s office.

“As the suspect headed south, she was clocked at speeds up to 120 mph,” said Pullen. “Our speeds throughout the chase ranged from 40 - 105 mph.”

Once on I-45, the suspect continued through Spring and into Houston, where officers from Harris County Sheriff’s Office and Houston Police Department joined in pursuit. The chase moved to Beltway 8 North headed westbound. It was on the beltway near Hwy 290 that an officer from Harris County Sheriff’s Office performed a pit maneuver – striking the suspect’s car at an angle to spin it out and force it to stop.

“The pursuit commenced at 12:29 p.m. and concluded at 1322 hours [1:22 p.m.] when the suspect was taken into custody,” said Lt. Gordon. He pointed out that, despite Davis’ attempts to ram her own car into her pursuers, no civilian vehicles were struck and there was no collateral damage.

The topic of high speed pursuits is frequently a hot-button issue, and while some agencies find their hands tied when attempting to apprehend fleeing suspects – including a controversial policy that Houston Police Chief Harold Hurtt instituted in 2006 limiting officers’ ability to initiate chases – Montgomery County law enforcement and Shenandoah Police Department in particular have policies that confidently embrace the ability to catch a fleeing criminal and maintain public safety at the same time.

“Our policy is based on the officers’ knowledge of existing conditions,” said Gordon. “If the officer determines that the benefits of the pursuit far outweigh the risks, then he or she can engage. At any given moment, the officers involved in the chase have the ability to gauge the situation and adapt accordingly.”

Davis was taken into custody and booked into Montgomery County jail, charged with fraudulent possession of stolen identifying information and stolen credit and debit cards. The cards had been burglarized from a car in College Station the day before, and the check that she had attempted to cash was itself stolen from yet another vehicle.

“And it didn’t stop there; we soon discovered that she had warrants out against her from Michigan on fraud-related charges,” Gordon said. Additionally, Woodlands Online learned that she is facing additional charges of felony evading, as well as possible charges of aggravated assault on a peace officer for her attempts to collide with her pursuers.

When asked if this was her first such pursuit or an everyday aspect of her job, Sgt. Pullen laughed. “It’s not a common event, but it’s certainly not my first one, either. Fortunately, all of us are well trained in procedures.”