Officers Open Fire After Suspect Leading Chase Into Jurupa Valley Rams Patrol Vehicle
JURUPA VALLEY (CBSLA) — A man is in custody Monday after leading police on a chase into Jurupa Valley, ramming a fence and a patrol car, prompting an officer-involved shooting, and trying to run after crashing his Jeep into a hillside.
The Pyrite Avenue on-ramp of the 60 Freeway was closed for hours after the officer-involved shooting at about 3 a.m.
California Highway Patrol officers began chasing the man, identified later as 25-year-old Jason Knapp of Rancho Cucamonga, on suspicion of DUI. Knapp already has two DUIs on his record, according to police.
But when they chased him to Pyrite Avenue, police say he aggressively backed into officers who were standing outside the vehicle, forcing them to open fire.
The man was not hit, and continued onto the freeway and got off again at Granite Hill, where he crashed his Jeep into a hillside. Police say he abandoned the Jeep at Canal and Lindsay streets and ran away, but was eventually taken into custody.
Knapp now faces charges of DUI, evading an officer, and assault.
The Riverside County Sheriff's Department will take over the officer-involved shooting investigation.