CRACK-COCAINE driver booked after wild car chase, say police

Sheriff’s deputies in hot pursuit from Paradis to Waggaman at speeds up to 100 mph

By Staff Report

January 24, 2007 at 12:41 pm  | Mobile Reader | Print 

And when all was said and done, a 32-year-old Destrehan man who reportedly was high on crack cocaine led St. Charles Parish Sheriff's deputies on a wild car chase that started in Paradis and didn’t end until he slammed his silver Chevy Malibut into a tree in Waggaman, reports said.

The drama allegedly unfolded after Charles Verda Jr. nearly struck a deputy who was directing traffic in a school zone at Louisiana Street and U.S. 90 in Paradis.

Verda, of 185 Gordon St., fled deputies at speeds of up to 100 mph, the reports said.

He allegedly passed vehicles on the shoulder of U.S. 90 before maneuvering around a school bus that was unloading small children on Old Spanish Trail in Boutte.

Verda then headed down Paul Maillard Road. He turned right on River Road toward Ama.

He continued into Waggaman and crashed through a gate leading into a pasture, sheriff’s reports said.

He plowed ahead until he smashed his car into a tree.
According to reports, deputies chased Verda over several barbed-wire fences before he hit the ground and laid there with his hands over his head.

Verda  was treated for cuts to the head and hands at St. Charles Parish Hospital. He was then taken to the Nelson Coleman Correctional Center, where he was held in lieu of $250,000 bond.

Sheriff’s Capt. Pat Yoes said Verda told deputies that he doesn't remember what happened after smoking crack cocaine.

Sheriff’s Capt. Pat Yoes says the public’s safety is paramount during a high-speed chase. These rules can keep you safe:

- If you see emergency  lights flashing, move off the road as quickly as possible.

- Yield to the right whenever possible.

Yoes says deputies do not give chase unless they have a good reason.