Santa Rosa police pursuit, foot chase ends in arrest

An attempt to stop a driver on a Santa Rosa street for a vehicle code violation Sunday night turned into a high-speed chase with the suspect nearly ramming a patrol car before he was chased down and arrested on a bike path, according to Santa Rosa police.

The officer swerved to avoid the oncoming car and the vehicles swiped bumpers, police said in a news release. The driver eventually was arrested after ditching his car and running into the Prince Memorial Greenway.

The chase started about 7:20 p.m. when an officer tried to get the driver to stop on West Avenue, near downtown Santa Rosa. The driver, in a Honda Accord, sped off and then turned around at a dead end, heading back toward the pursuing patrol car. There was minor damage from the collision and the pursuit continued, with the Honda driver reaching 70 mph on city streets.

The suspect stopped near Olive Park and ran into the nearby greenway.

Douglas Rupert, 44, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon involving a police officer, felony evading, narcotics possession and violating his parole.

The Lake County man was booked into the Sonoma County Jail and remained in jail Monday without bail, due to the parole violation.

Randi Rossmann