On February 12th, 2015 at approximately 10:09 pm the Washington County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a vehicle pursuit which ended in an accident, with the suspect fleeing on foot in the area of 200th St & Juniper Av. Emergency personnel from West Chester First Responders, Washington Rescue, and the Washington Fire Department all responded to the scene. Law Enforcement officers from Johnson County, Washington County, Iowa Highway Patrol, and Washington Police Department searched the area on foot with the assistance of K-9’s and were unable to locate the suspect. A WENS (Washington Co. Wireless Emergency Notification System), alert was issued to residents within a two mile perimeter of the incident to lock their doors, pull the keys from their vehicles and to report anything suspicious. The activation reached citizens outside of the radius and we are working with the vendor, to ensure that it does not happen again. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate the assistance we received from the public. There were some concerns about the location not being included in the alert. The alert was aimed at being limited to a certain area. The exact same location is not provided to ensure scene security and public safety.

At approximately 5:09 am this morning February 13th, 2015 the suspect was located and taken into custody without incident. Walter Joseph James Jr (30) of 279 Paddock Circle, Iowa City, has been charged with Driving Under Suspension, Speeding, failure to obey stop sign, reckless driving, failure to maintain control, driving on wrong side of a two way highway, possession of controlled substance – marijuana 3rd offense, eluding, and burglary 3rd degree, and is currently being held in the Washington County Jail.

“A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty”