CCSO release – On December 16th, 2020 at approximately 10:17 PM, a traffic stop was initiated by Coos County Deputies on Hwy. 42 near Hyland Rd. A red Hyundai Tiburon with no license plates had been observed by Deputies swerving out of his lane of travel in an area of construction near the junction of Hwy. 42 and Hwy. 101. At the initiation of the traffic stop the driver, later identified as 32 year old Steven M. White of Coos Bay, accelerated to a speed of approximately 74 miles an hour. Deputies pursued the vehicle as it drove Eastbound on Hwy. 42 toward Coquille. Near the intersection of Hwy. 42 and Green Acres, Mr. White performed a U-turn and drove the vehicle back toward the City of Coos Bay reaching speed’s up to 90 miles per hour and driving in the wrong lane of travel. Mr. White ran over placed spike strips at the intersection of Hwy. 101 and Coos Sumner Rd. and then again later in downtown Coos Bay. He ultimately lost both front tires, and had both rear tires deflated, but continued attempting to elude Deputies. Deputies were aided by both the Coos Bay Police Department and the North Bend Police Department as the vehicle drove both in the correct and the oncoming lane of traffic through their cities. Due to the erratic driving pursuing deputies and officers backed into a “slack pursuit” once on Virginia Ave. Mr. White’s vehicle ultimately stopped functioning and caught fire near the intersection of Lakeshore Dr. and Morrison Rd. Mr. White ran on foot from that area and was later apprehended by canine Deputy Odin.
