A Port Allegany man was arrested on suspicion of assault, fleeing police and DUI after a Friday night traffic stop.
Christopher L. Taylor, 31, of 24 Roper Road, Port Allegany, was arraigned Saturday before District Judge William Todd on charges of aggravated assault, a first-degree felony; fleeing or attempting to elude police, a third-degree felony; three counts of resisting arrest and one count of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, second-degree misdemeanors; DUI-controlled substance and possession of a small amount of marijuana for personal use, misdemeanors; and the following summaries: driving while license is suspended or revoked, driving without a license, driving at a safe speed, exceeding maximum speed limit by speeds in excess of 100 mph and reckless driving.
According to the criminal complaint, at 9:05 p.m. Friday, Port Allegany police officer Tony Tanner tried to pull over a car driven by Taylor after observing the car speeding on Main Street (U.S. Route 6) and traveling south through the intersection with Mill Street without stopping for a red light.
Officer Tanner activated the lights and siren of the patrol vehicle, but the car continued traveling east on Route 6. During the pursuit, the car driven by Taylor was moving in excess of 100 mph, the complaint stated.
Tanner called for back-up; before more officers arrived, Taylor pulled over on the eastbound berm of Route 6. Tanner asked for Taylor’s license, registration and insurance, but Taylor “stated ‘he doesn’t have one and I’m an alien motherf—cker,’” the complaint read.
According to court records, when Tanner asked Taylor — who smelled like marijuana — if he was high, he agreed he was.
When back-up arrived, Taylor was asked to do field sobriety tests. Taylor “stated he just wanted to drive away and was advised he wasn’t driving anywhere,” the complaint stated. Taylor, who had become agitated, got out of the car and allegedly pushed Tanner backward.
This caused officers to arrest Taylor, who was resisting and had to be told multiple times to put his hands behind his back. Officers found a bag of suspected marijuana in the car, too, court records stated. At one point, an officer observed Taylor moving around the back of the patrol car, only to find Taylor slipped one hand out of the cuffs.
Taylor was pulled out of the car and advised to stop resisting and to relax his arm so police could re-cuff him. Once both his hands were in handcuffs, Taylor “was told knock his crap off,” and Taylor spit on Tanner, the complaint stated.
While the officers were transporting Taylor to UPMC Cole, they stopped the patrol car because Taylor was banging his head off the partition. When the door was opened, Taylor kicked Tanner twice in the leg, according to the complaint.
At the hospital, Taylor refused to submit to a blood draw, and he said he was planning to assault Tanner, court records indicated.
Police later learned that Taylor borrowed the car he was driving to run to Sheetz and back, but the owner did not give him permission to leave town, the complaint stated.
Taylor is incarcerated in McKean County Jail in lieu of $30,000 bail. He is scheduled to appear in Central Court on Thursday.
