A nationwide manhunt for three Florida siblings ended at 10 a.m. on August 10, 2011 when the Dougherty siblings crashed their Subaru Impreza into a guardrail near Walsenburg, Colorado after racing down I-25 at speeds approaching 120 mph.
Also known as "The Dougherty Gang," 21-year-old Ryan Edward Dougherty, 26-year-old Dylan Dougherty Stanley and 29-year-old Lee Grace Dougherty are suspected of firing at a Florida police officer during a high-speed chase on August 2, 2011. They are also suspects in the robbery of a Valdost, Georgia bank a few hours later.
According to a Colorado State Patrol press release, Colorado State Troopers received a citizen tip around 9 a.m. on August 10, 2011 that the Dougherty's vehicle, a Subaru Impreza, was spotted at a campground on Hwy 165 in the San Isabel National Forest near Colorado City, 28 miles north of Walsenburg. The vehicle was gone when Officers arrived.
The vehicle was then seen at a gas station near exit 74 on I-25 by a Pueblo County Sheriff's Deputy who contacted the Colorado State Patrol then followed the vehicle on I-25. When Colorado State Troopers attempted to stop the vehicle the Doughertys sped off, sparking a high-speed chase down I-25. Lee Grace Dougherty fired at Colorado State Troopers from within the vehicle. Troopers deployed stop sticks at mile marker 52 near the Walsenburg exit causing the Dougherty vehicle to crash into the guardrail.
One of the Dougherty brothers was arrested immediately after the crash by Huerfano County Sheriff’s Deputies and Walsenburg Police Department Officers. According to the Colorado State Patrol press conference summary, Lee Grace Dougherty exited the vehicle and ran into a nearby field. She had an MAC-11 automatic pistol in her hand. She made threatening gestures toward officers and was shot in the leg. The third suspect escaped on foot. He was later apprehended in Walsenburg by civilians and Huerfano County Sheriff's Deputies. All three of the suspects were transported to a nearby medical facility for treatment of injuries. No officers or bystanders were injured in the incident.
Officers found two AK-variant automatic rifles, one MAC-11 automatic (magazine-fed and self-loading) pistol, and one handgun at the scene.
At 6:30 p.m. on August 10, 2011, the Colorado State Patrol posted on Twitter that all three Dougherty suspects were in the process of being booked into the Pueblo County Jail. Each suspect has been charged with four counts of First Degree Assault on a Peace Officer.
The Southbound lane of I-25 was closed for most of the day and traffic was diverted through Walsenburg, Colorado at a slow pace that lasted nearly three hours for travelers. Some Walsenburg residents sat on their porches and in cars on the side of the road greeting travelers and two young boys stood on the sidewalk in town waving their arms up and down, trying to convince truck drivers to honk their horns.
Darla Sue Dollman - Darla Sue Dollman, BA, MFA, has expertise in classic films, the Old West, boating, and animals.
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