Woman admits running from police was a stupid decision

By: Richard Gould | Hickory Daily Record
Published: March 13, 2010

Two women led Long View police in a high-speed chase Friday after an officer tried to pull them over for failing to stop at a stop sign.

A Long View officer watched them ignore the sign near Circus Hall of Cream at 211 22nd St. S.W. and pulled them over. When he got out of the car, they bolted and he chased them through side streets for two miles before they stopped at 12th Street, S.W. off U.S. 70 across from Wendy's, said Lt. R.A. Coffee of the Long View Police Department.

The driver, Julie Anne Bonham, 31, was arrested and charged with driving without a license, speeding to elude arrest, possession of drug paraphernalia and resist, delay and obstruct an officer.

Her passenger, Crystal Dawn Bryant, 23, was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.

Asked why she didn't stop for police, Bonham said, "I did, but my lovely friend over here (indicating Bryant) told me to go."

Bonham admitted to reporters it was a stupid decision.

Bonham and Bryant are also suspected of stealing gasoline from the Texaco station Fairgrove in a drive-off Friday morning. The Catawba County Sheriff's Office is investigating the case.

Bonham is no stranger to police.

She has been locked up in the Catawba County jail 10 times since 2006.

Bonham has been charged with driving without a license and possession of drug paraphernalia eight times. She has several pending charges against her and she's been found guilty of driving without a license three times and possession of drug paraphernalia twice.

When she was arrested Friday, she was out on a $10,000 secure bond in connection with a 2007 convenience store robbery.

She was charged with felony breaking and entering, larceny and possession of stolen goods after the Handy Mart at 3166 N.C. 16 South was robbed on Oct. 25, 2007.

Taken was $2,800 in cash, 202 cartons of cigarettes and eight lottery tickets, according to the arrest warrant. The total value of the stolen goods was $8,013.

The next day she went to the Bunker Hill Exxon to cash in winning lottery tickets worth $92. They'd been flagged as stolen and the sheriff's investigators were notified. They recognized her from the surveillance footage and issued an arrest warrant for her, said Chief Deputy Coy Reid of the Catawba County Sheriff's Office.

She and an unidentified man were suspects in the robbery. He was never arrested.