Small Town News

State cracks down on running from law

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A case that just went before a judge in Wharton shows the major impact of a new law affecting those who make it a habit to run from police.

Harvey Joe Stokes, 51, of 501 Kerney in El Campo will now spend more than a decade in state jail for a Nov. 15, 2009 incident during which he took off on foot after being stopped by El Campo police.

According to Ross Kurtz, assistant Wharton County District Attorney, Stokes was to have gone before 329th District Judge Randy Clapp for a jury trial Wednesday.

"Instead, he decided to plead guilty to the charge of evading on foot with a prior conviction and go directly to Judge Clapp for sentencing," Kurtz said. "That sentencing hearing was held yesterday."

Kurtz said evading police on foot used to be a misdemeanor no matter how many times a person had been convicted of doing so in the past, but during the 2009 session of the Texas Legislature, things changed.

"The punishment for a second or more offense was increased to a state jail felony," Kurtz said. "In addition, because the state proved Mr. Stokes was a habitual offender - someone who's had two or more separate and consecutive trips to prison - his range of punishment was enhanced to a second-degree felony, which can result in a sentence of two to 20 years in prison or up to 10 years probation."

Kurtz called El Campo Police Sgt. Chris Hadash who said Stokes ran from him after being pulled over on that dark November night, whipping out of sight around corners until Hadash caught up with him when Stokes' flight was blocked by a fence. Hadash testified he was forced to draw his weapon when Stokes would not comply with his commands to lay on the ground and instead came toward him in a threatening manner.

ECPD Deputy Chief Terry Stanphill was the state's next witness and discussed how dangerous foot pursuits are for officers, and how ECPD has dealt with Stokes for more than 20 years.

Kurtz said Stokes has multiple misdemeanor convictions and seven felony convictions - all for possession of a controlled substance - for which punishment ranged from two-year to 10-year Texas Department of Corrections sentences.

Judge Clapp sentenced Stokes to 12 years in the Texas Department of Corrections.

"The state could not be happier with this ruling," Kurtz said. "As the judge himself remarked, Mr. Stokes and defendants like him are the reason behind the legislature's move in making a second offense a felony, and his own lengthy criminal history earned him the 12 years he will now serve.

"This stiff sentence reaffirms Judge Clapp's commit-ment to harshly punishing those who endanger the fives of police officers. It takes a lot of courage to chase suspects in total darkness with no backup. We all owe our officers a debt of gratitude for their sacrifices."



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© 2010 East Bernard Express East Bernard, Texas. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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