A Palmdale man is due back in court in January for a hearing on felony charges for his alleged involvement in a high-speed pursuit with California Highway Patrol officers that was captured on dashboard cams and shared on social media.
The L.A. County District Attorney’s Office charged Kevin Alexis Duran, 26, with felony evading arrest and assault with a deadly weapon after a Jan. 30 incident. Prosecutors added two allegations that the incident happened while Duran was on bail for a previous charge.
He pleaded not guilty at a May 21 preliminary arraignment.
CHP officers suspected Duran was driving a stolen Ford Bronco near an area identified as a local trailhead off Soledad Canyon Road, according to dashcam footage from a YouTube channel called “Police Transparency.”
Footage later verified by CHP officials shows officers pulled up behind a Ford Bronco in the parking lot and parked behind it before giving instructions to the driver.
Officer Carlos Burgos-Lopez, spokesman for the Newhall-area CHP office, confirmed the Bronco was part of a stolen-vehicle investigation.
The Bronco is seen in the video reversing into the CHP officer’s vehicle multiple times before driving off in what officers later said was a pursuit that reached speeds in excess of 100 mph.
CHP officers confirmed Duran was pursued into the Palmdale area, where an officer executed what’s known as a Precision Immobilization Technique, or PIT maneuver, on the Bronco, according to information released with the video online.
Duran was found nearby and treated for medical injuries at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, before he was arrested on suspicion of felony charges, according to officials.
Duran’s case is being heard at the Lancaster Courthouse for L.A. County Superior Court.
Duran remains in custody in the South Facility of the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic in lieu of $245,000 bail.
He’s due back in court Jan. 14 for his next court date.
