A 20-year-old Los Angeles man charged with two felonies in connection with his alleged role in a September pursuit with California Highway Patrol officers pleaded not guilty last month at L.A. County Superior Court in San Fernando.
Officers with the Newhall-area CHP said Ian Kianduma Karune was sought by officers following a stolen-vehicle investigation made in conjunction with the CHP’s Antelope Valley-area Office and the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.
On Dec. 19, Karune pleaded not guilty after waiving his right to have his case heard in front of the judge in a preliminary hearing. At a preliminary hearing, a judge hears the prosecution’s case, any affirmative defense, and then determines whether there’s enough potential evidence to prove guilt at a trial.
The alleged incident involved a stolen black GMC Sierra heading north on State Route 14, south of Sand Canyon Road on Sept. 16, according to an email from Officer Carlos Burgos-Lopez.
Newhall CHP units began to respond, he wrote, and Antelope Valley officers spotted the GMC on Sierra Highway, near Palmdale Boulevard, and the driver fled as soon as they tried to pull over his vehicle.
“The suspect drove back to (the southbound lanes of State Route 14) and CHP Newhall-area units were able to get into position to intercept the vehicle,” he wrote. “As the suspect vehicle entered the CHP’s Newhall area, units deployed a spike strip and had a successful spike on (the southbound lanes of State Route 14), north of Escondido Canyon Road.”
Burgos-Lopez said Karune did not stop after hitting the spike strips, despite having one tire deflated, and eventually got onto Interstate 5, and then Interstate 405.
Court records available online indicated Karune was charged with evading arrest and taking a vehicle without consent.
Karune also pleaded no contest Friday to a separate allegation of evading arrest and disregarding officer safety, but his sentence was not immediately available pending a “post-disposition proceeding.”
That incident was part of a Los Angeles Police Department investigation, and officers were not immediately available for comment Friday.
Karune is due back in court Jan. 28 for a pretrial conference.
Karune remains in custody at Men’s Central Jail.
