San Diego County man accused of leading police on pursuit, ramming patrol vehicles with teenage son in car
A San Diego County man was arrested after a chaotic night in which he is accused of leading deputies on a pursuit and using his vehicle to ram occupied patrol cars, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
It began on the evening of Sunday, February 13th, when 47-year-old David Salas Jr. allegedly became involved in an intoxicated verbal altercation at a Super Bowl party on the 14000 block of Rancho Coupa in Valley Center. Salas’s 15-year-old son was also with him at the party, the Sheriff’s Office said.
When the altercation became physical, other partygoers restrained Salas while police were notified. Salas ultimately freed himself and fled, along with his son, in his vehicle, reportedly striking another parked car in the process and driving away without stopping.
Responding deputies tried to intercept Salas and pull him over. Although Salas stopped several times, he reportedly refused to comply with deputies’ commands, at one point ramming two patrol cars so severely that it rendered them inoperable.
Finally, the pursuit ended when Salas stopped the vehicle in the front yard of a home on West Duro Road, on the San Pasqual Indian Reservation. After about an hour-long standoff in which Salas had barricaded himself and his son in the vehicle, Salas reportedly agreed to surrender.
As the two approached deputies, Salas reportedly tried to get back into the car, but was stopped by deputies after managing to cause the vehicle to roll into a nearby ditch. Salas and his son were later treated for minor injuries.
Salas was ultimately arrested and booked on suspicion of multiple counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, with bail set at $1 million.
