Lanett man dies from injuries after leading police on high-speed chase

Published 1:08 pm Tuesday, November 3, 2020

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A man has died after wrecking his vehicle during a high-speed chase Sunday morning, according to Lanett Police Chief Johnny Wood.

Charlie Ralph Barnes, 41, of Lanett, had been found unconscious and unresponsive following the accident, according to a press release from the LPD. He was taken to Piedmont for further care, where he died from his injuries on Monday, Wood said.

According to a LPD press release, the wreck occurred after LPD Officer Blake Brown attempted to stop a Ford Escape for speeding around 1:15 a.m. Sunday. The vehicle came to a stop near the intersection of Magnolia Road and South 22nd Street, but as Brown exited his patrol car, the vehicle began to drive off.

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The Escape drove around the block and went back onto Magnolia Road. It then headed west a high rate of speed, according to the press release.

As the vehicle approached the intersection of Magnolia Road and 22nd Street West, the driver, Barnes, tried to turn left onto 22nd Street Southwest. As the vehicle made the left turn, it ran off road and struck a light pole.

The vehicle then rolled off the roadway and along the roadside before rolling back up onto the road and coming to a complete stop approximately 50 yards from the intersection of Magnolia Road and 22nd Street Southwest.

Brown secured the passenger, and Lt. CJ Looser located Barnes in the ditch approximately 25 yards from the wrecked vehicle.

Looser immediately began chest compressions on Barnes, and when Lanett EMS arrived on scene it took over the chest compressions.

The passenger was transported to the hospital. Wood said the passenger, who has not been identified, has been released from the hospital.

The LPD contacted Alabama Law Enforcement Agency to investigate the accident.