Staff Reports
A Niagara Falls man is facing several charges after Niagara County Sheriff’s deputies said he tried to avoid police while driving drunk and drag-racing early Wednesday.
Joe L. Harris II, 43, 2910 21st St., was charged with driving while intoxicated, failure to yield to an emergency vehicle, reckless driving, unlawful fleeing of a police officer, driving without a seat belt and participating in an illegal speed contest.
Deputies on patrol on Hyde Park Boulevard about 1:53 a.m. received a report of two vehicles — a blue Oldsmobile and a pickup — near the intersection with Saunders Settlement Road that were stopped side by side, revving their engines, apparently about to race.
A deputy on patrol in the area heard tires peeling out on Hyde Park Boulevard and saw two vehicles with their headlights on approaching him, headed south at a high speed.
The deputy clocked the cars going 110 mph, the report said.
More deputies were dispatched to the area to look for cars matching the descriptions given.
When deputies attempted to stop the Oldsmobile, driven by Harris, he hit his brakes and began to slow down, then sped up again and continued south on Hyde Park Boulevard.
The driver of the pickup involved in the pursuit blocked off a side road in front of the Oldsmobile, leaving the Oldsmobile stuck. As deputies pulled Harris from his car, the pickup sped away west on Niagara Avenue and out of sight, the report said.
Deputies said Harris began using expletives, saying, “You all got me with the (expletive) squeeze play! You all (expletive) set Joe up. Old Joe got played! Old Joe angry.”
Deputies noticed Harris was slurring his words, and asked him if he had been drinking alcohol.
He responded “I ain’t got nothing for you man. Joe is not going to dance for you. Show time is over.”
When asked to perform field sobriety tests, Harris replied, “I won’t dance.”
He was taken into custody and registered a 0.13 percent blood alcohol content on a breath test, the report said.
