Man Sentenced to 1 Year for Eluding Police in Stolen Car in 2024
NORFOLK, Va. — Andre Joseph Taylor, 33, was sentenced to serve one year in prison for felony eluding after he dangerously fled from a police officer who saw him driving a stolen car the day after it had been reported stolen.
On Sept. 7 around 8 p.m., the victim called Norfolk Police and reported that his rental car he had left running outside near the corner of 35th Street and Colley Avenue was stolen. The following afternoon, around 2 p.m. on Sept. 8, an officer saw the vehicle traveling eastbound on Brambleton Avenue while it was being driven by Mr. Taylor. The officer ran the vehicle’s information, saw that it was stolen, and initiated a traffic stop by turning on his patrol car’s lights and siren. Mr. Taylor refused to stop and caused the officer to begin pursuing him. Mr. Taylor sped through a residential area with other traffic and pedestrians at speeds up to 55 mph and drove the wrong way on a one-way street before finally slowing down and rolling into a shed outside a residence on Reservoir Crescent.
The police charged Mr. Taylor with felony eluding and grand theft of an automobile. On Tuesday, Mr. Taylor pleaded guilty to felony eluding and agreed to serve one year in prison with another year suspended on the conditions that he be of uniform good behavior for two years and have his driver’s license revoked for one year following his release. Judge Everett A. Martin Jr. accepted Mr. Taylor’s plea agreement, found him guilty, and sentenced him per the agreement.
“While it is impossible to know whether Mr. Taylor stole this car, we know for sure that he eluded the police in a dangerous and unnecessary way,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Ramin Fatehi. “All Mr. Taylor had to do was stop, and whatever he was facing, it would have been better than trying to flee. We will continue to hold accountable the people who endanger themselves and others by eluding.”
Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorneys A. Robinson Winn and Adam L. Lafon prosecuted Mr. Taylor’s case, and Norfolk Police Detective Mark R. Lowery led the investigation.
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