Cape man accused of four-county police chase in Illinois

Greene County, Illinois, authorities filed charges against a Cape Girardeau man accused of leading police on a four-county chase Tuesday that included ditching his car in the Illinois River, swimming across it and stealing a truck.

Jesse V. Dorris, 47, was charged with aggravated fleeing and attempting to elude a police officer, speeding, disobeying traffic-control devices, driving while license is revoked and driving under the influence of drugs.

He was being held without bail Wednesday in the Greene County Jail in Carrollton, Illinois.

According to a report in the Jacksonville Journal Courier, a Jerseyville, Illinois, officer tried to pull over a vehicle for a minor traffic violation. The driver drove north on U.S. 67 toward Carrollton at a high speed.

Greene County sheriff’s deputies picked up the pursuit and chased the man toward Kampsville, Illinois, on Highway 108. Officers from other police departments also joined in the pursuit at speeds of up to 80 mph.

Dorris ditched his vehicle in the river and began to swim across. Nearby ferry workers threw the man a life ring, but he ignored it and continued to swim. Once the man arrived on the other side of the river, police said he entered a campground and stole a pickup truck.

The chase continued into Pike County, Illinois, where a deputy forced the pickup truck into a ditch. Dorris was taken into custody near Detroit, Illinois.

Pertinent address:

Carrollton, Ill.