Slow-speed chase plods through Glenn and Colusa Counties

By Larry Judkins

Glenn County Observer

Thursday night’s pursuit through Colusa and Glenn Counties made the O.J. Simpson chase on the freeways of Los Angeles in 1994 look like the Indianapolis 500 by comparison.

At about 10:05 p.m., California Highway Patrol officers notified the Glenn County Sheriff’s Office that they were in a vehicle pursuit on northbound Interstate 5 near Delevan Road in Colusa County.

The pursuit entered Glenn County and CHP officers requested the assistance of a K9. Deputy Lemmon and K9 Orion responded to the area.

At County Road 60, the CHP successfully “spiked” the vehicle, but it continued northbound on I-5.

As the vehicle approached County Road 57 at about 35 miles per hour, Deputy Lemmon said he had “a visual on them.” As the vehicles approached the Road 57, the deputy remarked that the suspects “threw something out the window just before the offramp.”

A little later, officers found a firearm there.

Deputy Lemmon joined the chase, which ultimately entered Willows at Highway 162. At this point, they were traveling at about 20 miles per hour.

The suspect vehicle exited I-5 and turned east on Highway 162 (Wood Street). It then turned north on Humboldt Avenue, traveling at 15 miles per hour.

A deputy remarked that the vehicle had a male driver and female passenger.

The vehicle passed Green Street, crossed the railroad tracks, and turned right on First Avenue, still at 15 miles an hour. Deputy Lemmon said something like, “For your information, he does have [unclear] tires”, perhaps a reference to the damage caused by a spike attempt on the freeway.

They all passed Sunset Terrace at 15 miles per hour. At North Butte Street, the vehicle turned south.

The vehicle almost had a traffic collision at Butte and Wood Streets. Deputy Lemmon commented that there was “a tire in the roadway.”

The vehicles approached Sycamore Street, where they turned left. At Tehama Street, the suspect vehicle turned right (south), running the flashing red light in the process.

They reached a speed of 30 miles per hour, then slowed back down to 20. Traffic was light.

They passed Mar-Val Foods and continued southbound with speeds varying erratically from 20 to 40 miles per hour. South of County Road 57, the vehicle began traveling in both the northbound and southbound lanes of Highway 99.

South of County Road 60, Deputy Lemmon remarked that the suspect vehicle was “losing car parts” and had only one tire left, the others having been spiked by the CHP.

Moving at 30 miles per hour, they approached the wildlife refuge. The sheriff’s dispatcher reported that the CHP intended to deploy another spike strip at Highway 99 and County Road 68.

The audio of the law enforcement broadcast was not very clear, and it is uncertain whether the spike strip was successful in taking out the remaining tire. The vehicle, however, continued southbound on Highway 99.

Of the Glenn County Sheriff’s vehicles, only Deputy Lemmon’s remained in the pursuit after entering Colusa County. At this time, they had slowed to about 15 miles per hour.

The deputy asked that the Colusa County Sheriff’s Office be contacted to see if they have a K9 available. They did not, so Deputy Lemmon and his K9, Orion, continued.

Deputy Lemmon indicated he was concerned about releasing his K-9 “with all these guys in front of me.” He added, “I’ll try to get as close as I can.”

The pursuit ended on Highway 99, just north of Maxwell. Deputy Lemmon and K9 Orion assisted CHP officers until the vehicle occupants were taken into custody.

The driver was identified as Brian Jason Felix, 38, of Magalia. The passenger was Laura Renee Waddell of Chico.

Both have had contacts with the criminal justice systems in the Mid-Sacramento Valley. In early 2020, Felix was sentenced to state prison on charges that included felony evading.

When he was 24, in 2008, he was also sentenced to six years in prison for his involvement in a home invasion robbery in Chico. In 2014, he was arrested on charges that again included felony evading, and was sentenced to eight years, eight months in prison.