BRAZOS COUNTY, Texas (KRHD) — A 24-year-old man briefly escaped custody in a Brazos County courtroom Wednesday after being sentenced to five years in prison for evading arrest.
Jeffery Warren was sentenced by District Judge John Brick for evading arrest with a previous conviction.
After the sentence was announced, Warren cursed at court staff, resisted arrest and briefly escaped custody, knocking over furniture and equipment before bailiffs and investigators with the District Attorney's Office forcibly apprehended him.
Warren damaged fixtures in the 272nd District courtroom during his escape attempt. Investigators are pursuing additional charges related to the courtroom incident.
The sentence stems from an Aug. 27, 2022, incident when College Station police responded to Highway 6 after receiving a report about a stolen vehicle from Killeen that the owner was tracking via satellite GPS.
Police spotted the northbound vehicle and attempted a traffic stop around 6 p.m. Instead of stopping, the vehicle traveled at high speed, crossed into the grassy median and then into oncoming traffic on Highway 6. Officers terminated the high-speed pursuit due to public safety concerns.
Police later found the wrecked and abandoned vehicle in a nearby neighborhood. After setting up a perimeter and canvassing the area with a K-9 unit and reviewing Ring camera video, officers found Warren hiding in a nearby creek.
His co-defendant, who was driving the vehicle, was also found nearby.
Warren was on probation for felony evading from Bell County at the time of the offense.
"Every police chase is a dangerous event for law enforcement and innocent civilians. The defendant's behavior - while on probation for the same offense - requires a strong response to protect our community."
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