BEDFORD — An Oolitic man was arrested Sept. 15 following a high-speed, multi-county vehicle pursuit that ended in a construction zone in Martin County after a stolen SUV collided with a police cruiser behind a school bus.
Byron Ira, 56, of Oolitic, was arrested by the Lawrence County Police Department and remanded to the Lawrence County Jail. He faces preliminary charges of:
- Resisting law enforcement using a motor vehicle, a Level 6 felony
- Criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, a Level 6 felony
- Theft of a motor vehicle, a Level 6 felony
- Leaving the scene of an accident, a Class B misdemeanor
- Reckless driving, a Class C misdemeanor
- Unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle, a Class B misdemeanor
Stolen Vehicle and Initial Pursuit
According to a probable cause affidavit filed by Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department Sergeant Whitney Daugherty, Lawrence County Dispatch received a report around 7:00 a.m. regarding a stolen 2014 blue Ford Escape taken from the Casey’s General Store at 113 7th Street in Oolitic. The male vehicle’s owner reported that an unknown male entered and drove off in his SUV while he was inside the store.
Sgt. Daugherty spotted the stolen SUV traveling southbound on State Road 37 near John Williams Boulevard at a high rate of speed with its headlights off. After briefly losing visual contact, Sgt. Daugherty relocated the vehicle traveling southbound on State Road 37 and initiated a traffic stop north of State Road 50 West.
When Sgt. Daugherty drew his duty weapon and ordered the driver to turn off the engine and step out, the driver fled, turning westbound onto State Road 50 West toward Martin County.
Collision Near School Bus and Construction Zone Stop
During the pursuit on State Road 50 West, speeds reached between 60 mph and 100 mph, forcing oncoming traffic and overtaken motorists to pull off the road.
Directly behind a school bus carrying children, the suspect vehicle slowed down as if to pull over. However, the driver swerved left, causing the SUV’s left rear bumper to strike the right front bumper of Sgt. Daugherty’s pursuing patrol car. The vehicle continued fleeing without stopping following the collision.
The pursuit continued into Martin County and entered a single-lane construction zone governed by a temporary traffic signal. An oncoming Shoals Police Department officer was forced to swerve to avoid a head-on collision before a Martin County Sheriff’s deputy positioned his patrol vehicle to block the single lane ahead of stopped traffic.
Unable to proceed, the stolen vehicle came to a complete stop. Officers from the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department, Bedford Police Department, Shoals Police Department, and Martin County Sheriff’s Office removed the driver from the vehicle and took him into custody without further incident.
Sgt. Daugherty identified the driver as Byron Ira. After being read his Miranda rights, Ira claimed he stole the vehicle to drive to the airport to see his father, whom he alleged was Donald Trump.
The vehicle was photographed for damage, documented in an Aries crash report, and released at the scene to the owner’s juvenile son. Ira was transported to the Lawrence County Jail for processing and housing.
All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. This article is based on the information provided in the probable cause affidavit and does not represent a final determination of guilt or innocence.
