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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: 3. 31. 2001]
Brant Sanderlin / AJC photo
The Chevrolet Silverado that was driven by a man trying to elude police Friday afternoon sits in the parking lot of A. Philip Randolph Elementary School on Campbellton Road, near where the chase ended.
Chase slows spring break traffic
Copters tracking truck almost shut Hartsfield
By Richard Whitt
Atlanta Journal-Constitution Staff Writer
THE GETAWAY TRUCK
You might wonder why police chasing a 2001 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 through Atlanta's streets Friday afternoon didn't just pull in front of it or try to knock it off course by tapping the back end. One possible reason: It's a huge truck, slightly more than double the typical weight of a Ford Crown Victoria police cruiser. It is one of a group of trucks called a Òdualie" because it features two wheels on each side in the rear. Here's the rundown on the Silverado 3500:
Horsepower: 300 horsepower
Cylinders: 8 (diesel)
Height: 6 feet, 2 inches
Ground clearance: 7. 6 inches
Weight: 6,216 pounds
Payload: 5,714 pounds
Towing capacity: 12,000 pounds
Comfort: Leather, heated seats
Price: $40,000+
How did he get away so many times? Four-wheel-drive truck features a heavy-duty suspension, with locking differential. That means when it jumped a curb to drive across grass and mud, even if one wheel was spinning, the other could grab traction.
Why it's attractive to thieves: Motor Trend Truck of the Year, only about 100 in metro Atlanta.
It was just what Atlanta motorists didn't need on a Friday afternoon - especially the day spring break began for most public schools.
For about an hour in rush-hour traffic, the driver of a stolen pickup led police on a tortuous chase that at one point threatened to hold up air traffic at the world's busiest airport - when pursuing police and news helicopters briefly entered restricted air space at Hartsfield International.
Driving a truck nearly double the weight of the police cruisers in pursuit, a man police identified as Jonathan Fenn, 31, weaved through traffic on two interstates, slalomed around corners in a south Atlanta neighborhood, looped the terminal at Hartsfield in heavy traffic, clipped at least two vehicles and stopped only when he ran out of gas in southwest Atlanta and was boxed in by 19 police cars. No one was injured.
In a "Real Cops" version of March Madness, Atlantans began and ended the month watching dramatic police chases on metro highways.
As they did during a March 2 chase through Atlanta and DeKalb County, local television stations scrambled to cover the event live. This time, the pursuit coincided with the evening news shows, beginning shortly before 5 and running for about 45 minutes.
Fenn was charged with auto theft, altering a vehicle identification number, aggravated assault and attempting to elude police, plus "numerous" traffic violations, said Atlanta police spokesman John Quigley.
Fenn, who was taken to the Atlanta Detention Center, is scheduled to appear in city traffic court on April 4.
"After we review the tapes, there will be additional charges," said Quigley.
The 2001 Chevrolet Crew Cab 4-wheel drive pickup was stolen from Bill Heard Chevrolet at Town Center on Feb. 13, according to sales manager Michael Johnson.
"We think the keys were duplicated, but we have no idea how it was taken," he said.
Friday's pursuit began about 4:50 p. m. , when Atlanta police Officer J. E. Smith, investigating a burglary in northwest Atlanta, noticed a truck with a dealer's license plate, Quigley said.
When the officer attempted to pull over the driver, the truck speeded up, triggering the pursuit that at one point reached 80 mph.
Watching the chase on television, Jerry Williams, Bill Heard general manager, noticed the vehicle looked a lot like the truck stolen from his lot and called police.
With police pursuing on the highways and in the air, the driver stopped near Langhorn Street and I-20.
But before police could make an arrest, the driver took off and the chase was on again.
The truck turned onto I-20 east, darting through traffic, then onto I-75/85 south.
Near University Parkway, the truck clipped a car but managed to keep going south, finding its way along the interstate and through residential neighborhoods to Cleveland Avenue, where it sideswiped another car. The impact appeared to have damaged one of the truck's rear tires.
Then it was back onto I-85 southbound.
A string of police cruisers followed at a comfortable distance as the pickup took the airport exit and then the loop road heading into the south parking lot.
The pickup circled the airport at one of Hartsfield's busiest times - made busier by families trying to get out of town for the start of spring break.
News and police helicopters were granted permission to enter restricted airspace, and airplanes were briefly held up on taxiways.
No runways were closed and no flights were delayed, said Paul Myer, with airport operations.
Maneuvering through traffic by frequently switching lanes and using the emergency and HOV lanes to get around slower motorists, the driver kept dodging police efforts to head him off.
The Georgia State Patrol joined the pursuit as the truck took the Turner Field exit, turned onto Ralph David Abernathy Boulevard, cut through a Turner Field parking lot and then sped down Washington Street in the wrong direction.
Police nearly cornered the fugitive at Fulton and Spring streets, but he escaped and got back on I-20, this time going west.
Eventually he headed onto Thornton Road toward Douglasville, but then reversed and drove back into Atlanta.
A Georgia State patrolman tried to get beside the pickup to spin it but was unable to get the right angle.
Moments later, at 5:42 p. m. , the pickup rolled to a stop on Campbellton Road. The driver got out and put his hands up. The truck was out of fuel and the chase was over.
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