At end of chase, signs of contempt

A swig of beer and an obscene gesture greet deputies, who respond with a Taser blast.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published October 5, 2007

ST. AUGUSTINE - William Joseph Galloway wrecked his pickup after leading deputies on a 115-mph chase and tossing beer cans out the window. So authorities weren't thrilled with the 26-year-old man's next move: swigging beer and giving them the middle finger.

Authorities said he told them "he was going to die fighting and swinging." But a Taser shock ended that threat.

The Winter Park resident was being held Thursday on $8,000 bail in the St. Johns County Jail.

The chase began about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday when a Florida Highway Patrol trooper began following a pickup truck with no headlights heading north on Interstate 95 in Flagler County.

Troopers and St. Johns County deputies said they watched the driver throw beer cans from the truck as it weaved in traffic at high speeds and in heavy rainfall. The pickup then spun off the road and crashed into a tree.

"The suspect rolled down his window and drank from a beer can while displaying his middle finger in defiance," the report said.

When Galloway started to reach for his glove box, a deputy fired a 15-second Taser stun gun burst, the report said.

Galloway told deputies he would have fought them all if he had not been jolted with the Taser, the report said.

After being taken to Flagler Hospital, he was booked into the county jail. Tests showed his blood-alcohol level was nearly twice the legal driving limit of 0.08 percent.

[Last modified October 4, 2007, 23:43:46]