NEW MARKET TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A 20-year-old Portsmouth man was being held in the Highland County Justice Center on a $15,000 bond after leading a sheriff’s deputy on a high-speed pursuit that ended when the vehicle he was driving crashed into a wooded area, according to the Highland County Sheriff’s Office.
UPDATE (July 27, 4:59 p.m.): This story has been updated with additional information from the Highland County Sheriff’s Office.
The pursuit began Saturday around 9:30 p.m. when a deputy on routine patrol saw a Honda Civic without working headlights or taillights traveling south on Mad River Road and pass a pickup truck in a no-passing zone, the sheriff’s office said. When the deputy tried to stop the car, the driver accelerated to speeds up to 85 mph before turning onto Griffith Road, where the Honda crashed into a tree line in the 5900 block, according to the sheriff’s office.
Four people got out of the wrecked Honda after the crash, some with visible injuries, the sheriff’s office said. Several juveniles who were riding in the vehicle were taken to Highland District Hospital, where they were treated and released, according to the sheriff’s office.
The driver ran from the scene on foot and was located a short time later hiding behind a nearby residence, where deputies took him into custody, the sheriff’s office said. He was identified as Jaydin M. Griffith, 20, of Portsmouth.
Griffith was charged with failure to comply with an order or signal of a police officer, obstructing official business, driving under suspension, a taillight violation and two counts of unlawful restraint, according to the sheriff’s office. He remained held in the Highland County Justice Center on a $15,000 bond.
The sheriff’s office also reported responding to two other incidents in the county over the same 48-hour period. A resident in the 6600 block of Pied Piper Parkway reported vandalism to a window on Friday, with charges pending, and a deputy investigated a reported assault in the 3100 block of Neal Road on Saturday. That case remains under investigation, according to the sheriff’s office.
Suspects are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Highland County Sheriff’s Office.
