ST. GEORGE — A Hurricane man appeared in court for sentencing after pleading guilty to an incident that began with a stolen truck and ended in a three-hour standoff with police.
Christopher L. Carrington, 36, of Hurricane, appeared in 5th District Court Jan. 14 where he was sentenced for three second-degree felony theft charges, one third-degree felony charge of fleeing from police, and a misdemeanor charge for drug possession, charges the defendant pleaded guilty to during a resolution hearing held in November 2019.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, the state agreed to drop six misdemeanor charges, including vehicle burglary, drug and paraphernalia possession, reckless driving, driving on a suspended license and possession of burglary tools.
The charges stem from an incident reported shortly after 10 p.m. April 19, 2019, when a Ford pickup truck was reportedly stolen in Washington City near the fire station on Buena Vista Boulevard. When the suspect, later identified as Carrington, reached Hurricane, a short pursuit ensued before the suspect “ditched the truck in the area of 700 West and 100 North and fled on foot,” Hurricane Police officer Ken Thompson told St. George News in a previous interview.
Shortly after the suspect fled, the Hurricane City Police Department sent a reverse 911 to residents asking them to “shelter in place,” advising that officers were dealing with “a high-priority situation.”
The suspect entered a residence to evade police, while an elderly couple sitting in chairs in the front yard of the residence refused to allow officers to enter the home.
Washington County’s Metro SWAT unit was then dispatched to the scene. Once they entered the residence, the suspect was taken into custody without further incident.
During the Jan. 14 hearing, District Judge Jeffrey C. Wilcox suspended three prison terms of 1-15 years and a 188-day jail sentence as part of the plea agreement. Instead, Carrington was ordered to serve 92 days in jail, with credit for 62 days. He was also placed on 36-months probation with Adult Probation and Parole, and all but $1,750 of the $71,000 in fines were suspended in the case, along with the option of completing 100 hours of community service in lieu of the fine.
Carrington was also ordered to obtain a substance abuse evaluation within 60 days, follow any recommended treatment or counseling, and submit a DNA sample as required by the courts.
The defendant was remanded to the Washington County Purgatory Correctional Facility to finish out his sentence.
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