Santa Rosa police chase stretches toward coast

A driver in a white Pontiac took off Tuesday night with a Santa Rosa police officer in pursuit, starting a chase that wove through parts of Santa Rosa then west through Sebastopol and out toward the Sonoma Coast.

The chase ended near Bodega when it became unclear which way the driver may have gone on Highway 1, Santa Rosa police Sgt. Lisa Banayat said Wednesday.

Officers now are attempting to contact the registered owner of the car.

The chase began at about 9:45 p.m. on Flower Avenue, near Santa Rosa Avenue, when an officer spotted a Pontiac, illegally parked and running, with no sign of the driver. The car also had expired registration tags, Banayat said.

As the officer approached the car, the driver, who was then behind the wheel, drove off. When he ignored a nearby stop sign at Petaluma Hill Road, the officer put on his lights and siren to pull him over. Instead, the officer reported, the driver sped up.

The pursuit followed Santa Rosa Avenue, Highway 101 and College Avenue, with stop signs and red lights ignored in spots, according to the report. With two officers in pursuit, from College Avenue the chase sped through a handful of Santa Rosa Junior College neighborhood residential streets before it headed west again, this time on College to Marlow Road, Fulton Road and out Highway 12.

The chase suspect’s speed on College Avenue was about 60 mph, with lesser speeds on the residential streets, and 80-85 mph on the highway, according to police reports.

In Sebastopol the driver blew through two red lights as he crossed through downtown and headed west toward the coast.

Between Joy Road and Highway 1 the officers no longer could see the Pontiac and the chase ended, Banayat said.

A county-wide alert to area law enforcement was issued about the car.