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47 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, March 23, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend March 22, 2005 Teen caught after another chase By MARK FREEMAN Mail Tribune A car carrying five teenagers raced away from pursuing police at speeds estimated at 70 mph Sunday night through the same southeast Medford area that was part of another teen’s deadly high- speed game with officers last month. This time, however, no one was injured and the 18-year-old driver from Jacksonville was arrested after the car became bogged down in a vacant lot off Barnett Road, according to the Medford Police Department. Sunday’s driver, Joseph Mathew Ziegler, was speeding through the same neighborhoods where two Ashland teens were spotted before a two-car crash in downtown Medford killed two people and injured two others, police said. "Thankfully, this one ended OK," Medford police Lt. Mike Moran said. "But given the circumstances and that kind of speed, you never know what can happen." Ziegler, who told police he lives on the 2400 block of Cady Road in Jacksonville, was taken into custody on charges of attempting to elude in a vehicle, which is a felony, along with reckless driving and four counts of recklessly endangering another person. Advertisement He was lodged overnight at the Jackson County Jail in lieu of $20,000 bail, a jail spokeswoman said. Ziegler was arraigned on the six charges Monday in Jackson County Circuit Court, where Judge William Purdy released Ziegler on his own recognizance after ordering Ziegler not to drive, court records show. Ziegler told police that the four passengers in his 1983 Toyota Supra two-door sedan — a 15-year-old boy and three girls, ages 15,14 and 14 — had sneaked out of their homes that night, Moran said. Ziegler said he sped away from police because he didn’t want the younger teens found outside their houses that night, Moran said. The case began shortly before 11 p.m. Sunday when Medford police Officer Shawn Vollrath saw Ziegler’s red sedan screech its tires and wobble when it turned swiftly from Black Oak Drive onto Randolph Street across from Saint Mary’s High School, Moran said. Vollrath saw the car speeding down the residential street and began to follow, but the car disappeared from his view, Moran said. When the car reappeared on Black Oak Drive, Vollrath turned on his overhead lights and Ziegler’s car sped north at an estimated 70 mph toward Barnett Road, Moran said. Ziegler’s car traveled through a red light at Barnett Road as it turned left, Moran said. Ziegler then turned off the lights as he sped west on Barnett Road, Moran said. Ziegler’s car then turned north onto Solano Circle, which leads to a cul-de-sac in a yet-to-be-built subdivision, Moran said. Vollrath discovered the car spun-out in an empty lot, he said. The Black Oak Drive/Barnett Road intersection was the same area where Kevan Thatcher-Stephens, 17, of Ashland, drove his Jeep Cherokee in excess of 100 mph while attempting to elude a Talent police officer on Feb. 11, according to police. Less than 20 minutes later, Thatcher-Stephens’ Jeep crashed into another vehicle at the intersection of Riverside Avenue and East Jackson Street, killing both drivers and injuring both passengers. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Advertisement s