A man who led deputies and State Patrol troopers on a high-speed chase over the Hood Canal Bridge on Tuesday morning remained in the Kitsap County jail Wednesday after Jefferson County Sheriff Tony Hernandez cornered him and a companion in a dead-end area down Hubbard Creek Road.
Shaydon Casey Childers, and Farrah G. Chaussee, both 24, were taken into custody by Hernandez’s deputies after a brief standoff Tuesday, the sheriff said.
On Wednesday, Childers remained in the Kitsap County jail on a $100,000 bail after being arrested on investigation of robbery, failure to appear and contempt of court.
Chaussee was released because police determined that she was “just along for the ride,” Kitsap County Sheriff’s Deputy Scott Wilson said.
The chase, in which the couple’s black Nissan sedan reached speeds of more than 100 mph on state Highway 104, apparently began with a robbery at a Kingston hotel, Wilson said.
He gave this account:
Childers and Chaussee, both Kitsap County residents, had stayed in the Blue Water Inn for two nights, but a dispute arose after hotel owner Sheila Power returned only $30 of a $50 deposit because of cheese on the carpet and a bloody towel.
Childers grabbed a $10 bill from Power and tore it in half, taking it and another $30 from the cash drawer before fleeing.
The couple began driving away at such a high speed that deputies abandoned the chase.
“He was driving like a maniac so it was too dangerous to pursue him,” Wilson said.
At about 9:45 a.m., Jefferson County sheriff’s deputies received the news that the car was headed toward the Hood Canal Bridge.
The car crossed the bridge and hit speeds of more than 100 mph as it traveled west on state Highway 104.
Hernandez said that his deputies were investigating a report of domestic violence, so he took the call himself and set up a stakeout at the junction of Highway 104 and state Highway 19.
When the car did not appear, he realized that it must have turned off somewhere between the bridge and the junction, where there is limited access to the highway.
He received a tip that the car had “made a hard right” on Garten Road, about a mile west of the floating bridge. Deputies searched the area with no result.
Then Hernandez drove down Hubbard Creek Road. He spotted the car.
Two people were inside.
He called for backup, drew his weapon and issued verbal commands, to which the two people didn’t respond.
“I did not know if they were armed, so I did not approach the car until the other deputies arrived,” Hernandez said.
Six deputies approached the car with guns drawn and forcibly pulled the two people from the car, Hernandez said.
Hernandez said deputies found hypodermic needles and about $40 cash, thought to be from the hotel, in the car, he said. No weapons were found, he added.
Chaussee had $150 in cash in her pocket, which police determined belonged to her.
Childers told deputies he had been released from prison a few months ago, said Capt. Mike Stringer of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
Both were interviewed and turned over to the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office.
Hernandez said the incident “was an example of what other law enforcement agencies go through every day in other parts of the state.”
“This is what law enforcement is supposed to be about, where agencies cooperate and work together to make an arrest,” he said.
________
Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
