Man arrested after high-speed chase

May 5, 2006

By MARY AMES

Frontiersman

MAT-SU - A Palmer man didn't appear for his bail hearing in Palmer District Court Thursday for charges of reckless driving and failure to stop at the direction of a police officer because he was in Anchorage for detoxification, according to Magistrate David Zwink.

That was news to his private defense counsel, Christina Alfonso, who drove to Palmer from Anchorage for the hearing.

Raymond William Beeter, 37, is in custody on a $5,000 bond and a court-approved third-party custodian after eluding Alaska State Troopers, Palmer police and Anchorage police during a high-speed chase from Palmer to just north of Peters Creek on April 27.

Beeter was behind the wheel of his silver 2001 dual-axle Chevrolet pickup truck heading east on the Palmer-Wasilla Highway about 11:44 a.m. when other drivers called dispatch to report his erratic driving, according to a trooper report.

Calls started coming in from drivers near the intersection of the Seward-Meridian Parkway and the Palmer-Wasilla Highway, according to trooper Eric Hinton.

&#8220He was running red lights and running people off the road,” Hinton said.

Two trooper cruisers contacted Beeter on the highway near the intersection with Ellen Street near Peking Garden, but Beeter wouldn't stop, Hinton said.

Palmer police officers Ed Mooney and Donna Anthony joined in the pursuit as Beeter headed toward Arctic Avenue, according to Palmer Lt. Tom Remaley.

At the intersection of the Old Glenn and Glenn highways, troopers laid out spike strips, which deflated five of Beeter's six tires, the report said. But Beeter sped down the Old Glenn on one tire.

Traffic was thin on Arctic Avenue, according to Hinton. Most drivers saw the lights from the patrol cars and pulled out of the way on the Glenn, he said.

Still, Beeter was traveling close to 100 mph down the Glenn, by Hinton's estimate.

&#8220I was doing 93 and he pulled away from me really fast,” Hinton said.

The Palmer police officers ended their pursuit about Plumley Road, Remaley said, but other people were waiting.

Near Eklutna Flats, Anchorage police laid out a set of stop strips. The spike strips troopers use are accordion like, and spread out when pulled, but the stop strips APD use are rigid, according to Hinton. The stop strips blew out Beeter's one remaining tire, yet he drove on.

Beeter finally lost control about Mile 24 of the Glenn Highway and slid his silver truck into a ditch. Beeter wasn't injured, according to the report.

Hinton arrested Beeter on charges of felony eluding and reckless driving, and cited him for failure to stop at a steady red traffic signal, improper turning at an intersection, passing left-of-center in a no-passing zone, speeding 20 mph or more over posted speed limit, not carrying proof of insurance and failure to wear a safety belt.

Beeter had not been drinking and wasn't using any drugs that police were aware of, Hinton said.

Beeter gave only one reason why he drove at speeds estimated at 70 to 80 mph on the Palmer-Wasilla Highway and eluded police at an estimated 100 mph on the Old Glenn Highway.

&#8220He said he was upset,” Hinton said.

Beeter didn't say why he was upset, said Hinton.

According to Hinton's report, when he got out of his truck, Beeter did not get on the ground as the officers told him to do. Instead, Beeter told the officers to shoot him until they subdued him with a Taser.

While the speeds Beeter drove are dangerous, especially considering the roads he was on, there is another danger when people flee from the cops, according to Remaley.

&#8220If you're running from the cops, you're focused on what's behind you, not what's in front,” he said.

Court records show a bail hearing for Beeter set for Thursday in Palmer District Court. Beeter has an open case of fourth-degree assault in St. Paul from July 4, records show.

Closed cases against Beeter include no-contest pleas to a Palmer DUI charge in 2004, an Anchorage DWI charge in March 2001, a minor consuming alcohol in Palmer in 1995, and an Anchorage charge of minor consuming in 1993.

Contact Mary Ames at 352-2284 or mary.ames@frontiersman.com.