Man charged with multiple felonies after police chase in allegedly stolen car

IDAHO FALLS — A Blackfoot man has been charged with multiple felonies after allegedly stealing a car and then leading officers on a high-speed police chase.

Karl J. England, 24, appeared in court Tuesday after he was charged with felony grand theft, felony attempting to elude an officer in a motor vehicle and misdemeanor resisting or obstructing officers on July 26.

Idaho Falls Police officers were patrolling in the area of South Boulevard in Idaho Falls when they noticed a black Toyota Tacoma that had been reported as stolen, according to the police report.

Officers drove up next to the car and saw a man and a woman inside. The man was later identified as England. Officers ran the license plate to confirm it was the stolen car and then started to approach the two to arrest them.

When England and the woman saw the officers, they reportedly “sped away through the alley.” According to officers, “the vehicle was traveling so fast that he lost control at one point and drove up on the lawn of a nearby church.”

Officers chased the car through a neighborhood “at well over 20 miles over the speed limit.” According to court documents, the car ran several stop signs and drove the wrong way down a one-way.

Eventually, the car drove down a dead-end road and was abandoned by England and the woman. Officers released a K-9 tracker, which led them to England, who was laying in tall weeds in a field about 250 to 300 feet from where they had left the car.

Officers took England back to a patrol car, but he refused to sit in the car after being asked several times. He told officers he was refusing to be arrested.

According to police, England “continued to resist arrest by stiffening his body and tensing/squeezing his muscles to avoid bending his legs or hips to sit in a normal seated position.”

Multiple officers were needed to get England in the patrol car, and he eventually gave up resisting.

England was then transported to the hospital for a jail clearance for “superficial scratches to his buttocks” from the K-9. He was then booked into the Bonneville County Jail, and his bond was set at $30,000. He is expected to appear for a preliminary hearing on Aug. 8.

Court documents do not detail what happened to the woman or if she was apprehended or charged.

Though England has been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.

If convicted, England could face up to 26 years in jail.