High Speed Chase Ends with Death

By Sophie Marconi

On August 1, 2016, in Department 7, the preliminary hearing of the People vs. Thomas Phillip Leae began, with Judge Samuel T. McAdam presiding over the case. The hearing regarded an incident that occurred on November 30, 2015, at approximately 10 pm. On the given day, Mr. Leae was involved in a high-speed chase with several police officers. This dangerous and drawn-out pursuit ended in the death of Mr. Leae’s girlfriend, Ali Siufunna, a passenger in the vehicle at the time.

As a result of the event, Leae is charged with the following six counts: murder in the second degree; evading a peace officer resulting in death; evading a police officer through reckless driving; vehicle theft; receiving stolen property; and driving under the influence of drugs, causing injury. All charges except for the last offense are considered felonies by Yolo County.

The first witness who took the stand was Officer Marcos Castillo, a California Highway Patrol officer. Officer Castillo has been a CHP officer for nine years. During the People’s direct examination, Deputy District Attorney Deanna Hays asked Officer Castillo to describe how the incident began.

Castillo testified that he was sitting in his patrol car on the side of the road when he saw the defendant speeding. He estimated the defendant’s speed at approximately 80 miles per hour. At this point, Castillo checked the vehicle’s speed with his radar, verified that the vehicle was driving at a speed above the limit, and pursued the vehicle going southbound on Interstate 5.

The prosecution asked Officer Castillo if he believed he made the right decision, considering the possible risks involved with engaging in a high-speed chase. Officer Castillo responded that with his past training and because the traffic was light, he believes he made the right decision in pursuing the vehicle.

After about half a mile, Castillo caught up to the vehicle and turned on his warning lights. At this point, the vehicle did not slow down in speed and pull over to the roadside, but rather sped up in an attempt to evade the officer. In response, the officer sped up to keep up with the vehicle, while he ran the license plate.

After running the license plate, Officer Castillo discovered that the vehicle had been reported stolen in Washington. The officer then called in for backup as he continued pursuing the vehicle at speeds up to 110 mph. About 10 miles into the chase, the suspect turned off his lights in an attempt to lose the officer.

The suspect was now driving well over 100 mph, swerving between lanes without his headlights on, and posed a serious threat to other vehicles on the road. At this point, Officer Castillo updated dispatch with the current location, speed and traffic conditions of the stolen vehicle.

Deputy Public Defender John Sage conducted a cross-examination on the witness. Mr. Sage questioned the safety of the pursuit, bringing attention to the high speeds and issues with visibility at such a late time. He also questioned why the officer did not use a pit maneuver or road spikes to stop the vehicle, to which Officer Castillo responded that either of these maneuvers would be much too dangerous at such speeds.

The second witness the People called to the stand was CHP Officer Timothy S. Lovato, who has worked as a CHP officer for 11 years. Officer Lovato was called in by dispatch to join the pursuit, and shortly became the primary officer in the chase, due to his past experience with high-speed chases, which he estimated to number between 23 and 28.

Officer Lovato, in primary position, was pursuing the vehicle when the suspect exited the town of Arbuckle and turned left without stopping at the stop sign. At this point Lovato executed a pit maneuver by placing his bumper against the rear bumper of the suspect’s vehicle in an attempt to bring the vehicle to a stop. The suspect’s vehicle came to a complete stop, but only temporarily.

Lovato then got out of his vehicle and initiated a felony stop. Through the window, Lovato saw that the driver of the vehicle was male, and a female passenger sat beside him. Soon after Lovato made this observation, the vehicle sped away toward the off ramp, and drove the wrong way on I-5 southbound.

At this point three police vehicles were pursuing the suspect on the proper side of the freeway parallel to the suspect vehicle. The suspect was driving over 100 mph, on the wrong side of the freeway, with his headlights turned off, making the situation incredibly precarious. Each police vehicle had a spotlight on the suspect’s vehicle, in an effort both to keep the vehicle in sight and to allow other drivers driving on I-5 southbound to see the vehicle coming and avoid an accident.

Approximately seven miles after the vehicle began traveling in the wrong direction on I-5 southbound, the suspect lost control of the vehicle while trying to exit at a rest stop, and drove down an embankment where he hit a tree. When the officers arrived at the accident, the car and passengers had sustained serious damage. The entire front of the vehicle was smashed to the point where both the driver and passenger had their legs entrapped by the dashboard.

Officer Lovato noticed that the passenger was unresponsive and had no pulse. Later the officer discovered that the passenger of the vehicle was Ali Siufunna. She died due to the injuries she sustained during the crash. She was not wearing her seat belt and none of the law enforcement witnesses could recall if her airbag had inflated.

Thomas Phillip Leae sustained critical injuries but survived the incident. He is scheduled to return for arraignment on August 16 at 9 am, as the People have met their burden of proof for Mr. Leae to be held accountable for all the felony charges against him.

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