High-speed chase defendant sentenced in New Kent court

A Hampton man, who led a State Police trooper on a seven-mile chase at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour along Interstate 64 and Route 33 in New Kent County, has been placed in a pair of state Department of Corrections programs.

Kacee Johnson, 22, of 49 Continental Drive #B, must successfully complete the state’s detention and diversion programs. Each takes about six months.

Judge Thomas B. Hoover imposed the sentence on March 15 in New Kent Circuit Court. If Johnson fails to qualify for the programs, the judge can consider placing the defendant in prison for up to five years.

Last April 17, Johnson was behind the wheel of a Chevrolet Impala that came through radar operated by Trooper Jonathan Miles at 85 miles per hour on westbound I-64, just west of the James City County line.

A chase ensued at speeds over 100 miles per hour. A dashboard camera mounted in Miles’ police cruiser recorded the incident. Video played at Johnson’s Jan. 11 trial showed Miles’ cruiser swerving into the breakdown lane to pass several vehicles. The Impala appeared as a speck in the distance, but was also using the emergency lane in a bid to escape.

Reaching the Route 33/West Point exit, the Impala pulled over on the ramp. Miles ordered the driver out at gunpoint, but the vehicle sped away, heading east on Route 33. At the traffic light at the 33/249/30 intersection, the Impala drove into the turn lane to Route 30, but made a sudden u-turn before coming to a stop. Johnson emerged and was ordered on to the ground at gunpoint by Miles.

“Only by the good graces, no one was injured,” prosecutor Linwood Gregory told the court at the March 15 sentencing.

Johnson told authorities he fled because he was driving on a license that had been suspended for unpaid fines. Hoover questioned why he was driving that day and why he failed to pay what amounted to only $85 in fines.

“I made a mistake, sir. Nobody’s perfect,” Johnson replied, adding, “I wasn’t thinking.”

“No. You were thinking and made a deliberate choice to get away,” the judge shot back. “Your actions could have killed people, and I’m going to sentence you today based on what you did. You have a lot of potential and skills for the future… but you need to be punished for what you did.”

The judge imposed five years in prison with all suspended for the next 10 years provided Johnson successfully completes the detention and diversion programs. The defendant has been held in jail since the Jan. 11 trial.