May 28, 2005 - BY
PAT GILLESPIE - Staff Writer
An Opelika, Ala., man died suddenly Friday morning after stealing a Lee County Sheriff's deputy's patrol car, crashing it and fleeing on foot, authorities said.
James Keith Cannon, 34, of Lee Road 632, was pronounced dead at 10:24 a.m. CDT at the East Alabama Medical Center by Lee County Coroner Bill Harris. A preliminary autopsy reveals that Cannon died of a "probable cocaine-induced heart attack," he said. There were no injuries that could have caused his death, he said.
Cannon was seen at Lee Road 401 in Beauregard, south of Opelika, around 9 a.m. Friday knocking on residents' doors, Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones said. A person called 911, stating that Cannon was acting suspiciously. As a deputy arrived, Cannon tried to jump onto the back of a moving truck, but fell off into the road. As Deputy Jessica Daley, approached him, he overpowered her and stole her patrol car.
Jones said more deputies responded and a pursuit followed Cannon along Lee Roads 401 and 166 with speeds up to 90 mph. After eight minutes, he crashed the patrol car, got out and fled on foot.
Deputies, assisted by Opelika police officers and residents, tracked down Cannon in a resident's front yard after another struggle, in which Cannon stole deputy Daniel Scivicque's baton and struck him in the head. Deputies then restrained Cannon with handcuffs and he stopped breathing, Jones said.
Jones said deputies performed CPR and Cannon was rushed by ambulance to the East Alabama Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
"All of a sudden, he stops breathing," Jones said. "I do want to emphasize no shots were fired at any time."
Jones said investigator Ray Smith, Scivicque and Daley were all treated at the East Alabama Medical Center and released. He said Daley sustained a fractured thumb and Scivicque required several stitches. He said Smith had some numbness on his face.
The sheriff's office is performing an internal investigation and has requested the Alabama Bureau of Investigation to conduct a separate investigation.