Tenn Detectives Shoot Cuffed Suspect Who Stole Their Car, Ran Them Down
10/26/04 - By Mitchell Kline, The Tennessean
Fairview, Tenn
Two Fairview detectives shot a suspect in a multiple-vehicle theft who was trying to run them down in their own unmarked police car yesterday, Fairview, Tenn. Police Chief Terry Harris said.
Sgt. J.R. Holt and Cpl. Phil Jarosz is accused of shooting John R. Fuston, 27, in the head and right leg as he drove toward them in a black Ford Interceptor, a police car. Fuston, while unattended, had managed to get behind the steering wheel after being handcuffed and placed in the back seat.
Fuston, of Nashville, was conscious when emergency crews arrived on the scene. He was taken by medical helicopter to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition last night.
"He was trying to run over two officers, and they shot at him to stop him," Harris said. "This was the first time in at least 20 years that Fairview officers have shot a suspect," Harris further indicated.
The detectives were placed on administrative leave with pay yesterday after the shooting. Both were unavailable for comment. Harris said the TBI is conducting an investigation into the shooting.
The incident began at about 4 a.m., when Fairview Officer Pat Stockdale pulled over the car Fuston was driving on Highway 96 West, near Westwood Elementary. Harris said Stockdale spotted a traffic violation and learned through a license plate computer check that the car Fuston was driving had been reported, stolen.
Fuston, jumped out of the car and fled into a wooded area. His wallet and driver’s license remained in the car, Harris said. Police learned he was wanted n Kentucky on weapons and drug charges and was considered armed and dangerous.
Police dogs tracked Fuston to a residence on Horn Tavern Road, where the homeowner reported someone had just stolen his pickup truck with a handgun inside it. Police later found the truck abandoned on Interstate 40 near mile marker 183, but the handgun was gone.
At about 1:50 p.m., the homeowner called police and reported that a suspicious man had gotten out of a taxicab and was walking around the area where the truck had been stolen. "Maybe he went back for his wallet," Harris theorized.
The man walked around the house, then got back into the cab. Holt and Jarosz pulled the cab over on Highway 96 West, near the Flying J truck stop.
"The subject told the officers his name and it matched the ID that was found in the car," Harris said.
Fuston’s hands were cuffed behind his back, and he was placed into the rear seat of the detectives’ vehicle, which did not have a screen between the front and rear seats. The detectives then called for a patrol car to take him to jail, and went to the truck cab to look for the gun.
"Somehow Fuston got his hands in front of him and climbed over the front seat," Harris said. "He shifted the car into gear."
The detectives yelled for Fuston to stop and pulled out their guns, Harris said, but "he punched on the gas and was headed towards them when they opened fire."
The shots punctured the two tires and pierced the windshield and the passenger side of the car. One bullet hit Fuston in the back of the head, below his right ear, while a second hit him in the right thigh.
Fuston continued to drive over I-40, toward Dickson County. The detectives commandeered the taxicab and began a pursuit of the car. The chase ended on Williamson County Line Road, where Fuston stopped and surrendered.
Police from six different agencies arrived at the scene after radio dispatchers put out a "shots fired" call.
"Police in Williamson and Dickson counties are pretty tight," Harris, said. "When you hear there are shots fired, you don’t know if it’s an officer or someone else who’s been shot. No one knew at the time."