Mathew Adam Roppolo, 46, of Magnolia was sentenced to 35 years in prison on June 13 after leading the Magnolia Police Department (MPD) on a vehicle chase in December 2010.

According to the MPD, on Dec. 2 at 7:50 p.m. officers were notified about a possible fraud at a local grocery store. When the officer arrived on the scene, the suspect fled in a truck. A police pursuit ensued, reaching speeds of 90 to 95 mph.

Roppolo cut through grassy medians and across the front yards of several residences. The pursuit continued past two school buses, one of which had to drive off the roadway to avoid a collision. A female passenger jumped out of the passenger’s side of Roppolo’s vehicle as it was still moving.

MPD stated that vehicle pursuits are highly dangerous for officers and others on the road.

“Resisting law enforcement through felonious vehicle flight is conduct that presents a serious potential risk of physical injury to another,” an MPD press release stated.

The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office pursued the case. On June 13 Roppolo was prosecuted and was given a 35-year sentence, which marked the first conviction of this kind in Montgomery County, according to the MPD.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently handled a similar case.

In that case, Marcus Sykes also fled from police officers after being told to stop, according to official documents.

In Sykes’ case the possible conviction in question was “Is it a criminal offense whenever the driver of a vehicle knowingly or intentionally flees from a law enforcement officer?”

He was eventually convicted of Felony Vehicle Flight.

The MPD stated that the Supreme Court handed down a decision in Sykes v. United States, which compliments the actions taken by the Magnolia Police Department, working with the Montgomery County District Attorney.

“The Supreme Court’s opinion stated that even if the criminal attempting to elude capture drives without going at full speed or going the wrong way, he creates the possibility that police will, in a legitimate and lawful manner, exceed or almost match his speed or use force to bring him within their custody,” the MPD said. “A perpetrator’s indifference to these collateral consequences has violent, even lethal, potential for others.”

MPD Police Chief Domingo Ibarra explained that injury rates are much higher in a vehicle pursuit. Studies show that between 18 and 41 percent of chases involve crashes, which carry a risk of injury. Between 4 and 17 percent of all chases end in injury.

Ibarra stated that a 2008 International Association of Chiefs of Police study examined 7,737 police pursuits reported by 56 agencies in 30 states during 2001–07. Of those pursuits, the study found that there were 313 injuries to police and bystanders which is a rate of slightly more than four injuries to the non-suspects per 100 pursuits.

“This is a new age for law enforcement; as prosecutors and police team up to aggressively prosecute those perpetrators who attempt to evade arrest, while using their vehicles as a deadly weapon,” Ibarra said. “Their determination to elude capture makes a lack of concern for the safety of others an inherent part of the offense.”

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