Guilty plea nets 25 years for man who led officers on deadly pursuit
ANDERSON, Calif. — A man who led Anderson police officers on a dangerous October, 2019 high-speed pursuit in a stolen vehicle that ended in the death of one of his passengers pleaded guilty in court to numerous felony charges and enhancements yesterday, Dec. 1.
The pursuit ended when the driver, Derreck Gary Tope, hit an Interstate 5 median at the first exit to Cottonwood near Rhonda Way, causing the stolen vehicle to overturn multiple times, fatally ejecting one of his two passengers. Tope had just pleaded guilty the previous December to receiving a stolen vehicle and was ordered to serve six months of jail time in that case.
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A female passenger involved the pursuit later told KRCR News Channel 7 she had just met Tope earlier in the day and that she was “lucky to be alive.” At the time, the woman explained she and her companion, Ethan Purdy – the man fatally ejected – agreed to accompany Tope to breakfast minutes before the deadly chase began.
She also told investigating officers that throughout the chase, she and Purdy repeatedly begged Tope to stop and let them out of the stolen car; however he refused and continued fleeing from officers.
Derrick Tope pleaded guilty yesterday to a variety of felonies and enhancements related to a deadly Anderson pursuit that ended when he lost control of a stolen vehicle and crashed, causing one of his two passengers to suffer fatal injuries after being ejected. APD photo
Last year’s deadly incident began around 7:20 a.m. Oct. 2, when Anderson police officers spotted a stolen black Honda Civic traveling southbound on Highway 273 near South Street. When officers attempted to conduct a felony stop on the stolen vehicle, Tope ignored the officers’ lights and sirens and sped away; at which time a pursuit was initiated.
As Tope fled from officers, he drove without regard for the safety of pursuing officials or other motorists and pedestrians, eventually fleeing into the Shasta Gateway Center’s parking lot, Anderson PD officials said after the pursuit and fatal crash.
While at the shopping center, Tope “began turning in circles in the parking lot, causing public safety concerns due to the populated shopping center,” officials explained at the time.
After Tope entered the Factory Outlets parking lot the female passenger, who had been in the back seat of the Honda and has not been identified, said she and Purdy begged repeatedly to be let out of the vehicle.
However, despite their pleas, “Tope did not stop and continued driving back and forth across the parking lot,” officials said after Tope’s guilty plea yesterday.
SEE ORIGINAL STORY: Dangerous Anderson pursuit & crash leaves one dead
Tope then sped away from the shopping center at high speed, heading southbound on Highway 273 before turning onto Interstate 5.
“As the stolen vehicle approached the first exit to Cottonwood, it lost control and went over the embankment,” officials previously reported; adding that the Honda overturned multiple times before coming to rest upside down in the brush near Rhonda Road.
While officers found Tope and his unconscious female passenger seriously injured inside the overturned Honda, they discovered Purdy had been ejected from the stolen vehicle and had sustained critical injuries.
“As a result of the collision, the victim sustained severe injuries to his head and body and was pronounced dead at the hospital,” officials said yesterday; adding, “Department of Justice reports indicated that Tope was under the influence of methamphetamine at the time of the collision.”
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In light of the overwhelming amount of evidence against him, Tope yesterday pleaded guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, evading an officer with disregard for public safety, false imprisonment, and three counts of possession of a stolen vehicle with a prior conviction for vehicle theft.
Tope also admitted to enhancements of fleeing the scene and two counts of committing felonies while out on bail or early release.
“Tope entered the plea in exchange for 25 years in state prison,” officials said yesterday.
Tope’s sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 28, at 2 p.m., in Department 10 of the Shasta County Superior Court.
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Trevor Montgomery, 49, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, (the now defunct) Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.
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