OSCAR LEE BROWN-JANUARY 23, 2010

THIS CASE IS ONE FOR THE BOOKS. IN ALL OF MY YEARS OF BOUNTY HUNTING, I HAVE NEVER HAD A CASE SO FULL OF THRILLS, CHILLS, AND SUSPENSE. THE FUGITIVE, OSCAR, HAD A FELONY WARRANT OUT OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA FOR FAMILY VIOLENCE/BATTERY. HE WAS ONLY EXTRADITABLE FROM WITHIN ONE STATE AWAY FROM GEORGIA. AND OSCAR WAS LIVING IN HOUSTON,TEXAS, WITH THE SAME WIFE HE HAD BATTERED! SINCE GEORGIA WOULD NOT EXTRADITE FROM TEXAS, WE HAD TO ARREST OSCAR HERE, AND MEET THE BONDSMAN FROM GEORGIA IN MISSISSIPPI. OSCAR WOULD THEN BE TURNED OVER TO THEM, FOR THE RIDE BACK TO GEORGIA. WE WOULD BE PAID AT THE TIME OF THE TRADE, AND THEN DRIVE BACK TO TEXAS. SOUNDED PRETTY SIMPLE.WE HAD A GOOD ADDRESS ON HIM, SO JIM, MARK, AND MYSELF WENT TO THE APARTMENTS WHERE OSCAR AND HIS WIFE LIVED. IT WAS AROUND 9:00 AM. I PARKED MY TRUCK WHERE WE ALL COULD SEE THE APARTMENT. I HAD ALREADY VERIFIED THAT THEY LIVED THERE, AND DID NOT KNOW IF THEY WERE HOME ON A SATURDAY MORN, BUT I WANTED TO SEE EXACTLY WHERE THE APARTMENT WAS, SO THERE WOULD BE NO MISTAKING HIM FOR SOMEONE ELSE. AS I WALKED UP THE SIDEWALK, A MALE AND A FEMALE SUDDENLY CAME OUT OF A TOP APARTMENT. I LOOKED UP, AND AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, IT WAS OUT TARGET APARTMENT! I COULD NOT REALLY GET A GOOD LOOK AT THE MALE, SO I WALKED ON, IN HOPES THAT THE GUYS WOULD SEE HIM TOO. THEY DID. BUT THE MALE HAD ON A LONG SLEEVE "HOODIE". I WALKED TO THE END OF THE BUILDING AND TURNED UP TOWARDS SOME UNKNOWN APARTMENT. AS I STOOD THERE SMOKING MY CIGARETTE, THE MALE CAME WALKING BY ME, BUT HAD HIS HEAD DOWN, AND AWAY FROM ME. HE FIT OUR DESCRIPTION OF OUR SUBJECT. WHEN HE WAS OUT OF SIGHT, I MOTIONED FOR THE GUYS TO GO AROUND AND CUT HIM OFF. BUT OUR SUBJECT HAD DISAPPEARED INSIDE SOME OTHER APARTMENT. SO WE SAT THERE UNTIL AROUND 5 PM, WHEN SUDDENLY, A BLACK FORD RANGER PULLED UP RIGHT IN FRONT OF US. IT WAS OSCAR! AND THE WIFE! HE BACKED OUT, AND THEN PULLED DOWN AROUND THE CORNER, AND BACKED INTO ANOTHER PARKING SPACE. THAT IS WHEN WE MADE OUR MOVE. THIS IS THE PART THAT CAN BECOME DANGEROUS. YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT THE FUGITIVE IS THINKING. I PULL UP, AND BLOCK HIM IN. THE GUYS GET OUT TO APPROACH HIS TRUCK. THEY ARE GOING TO TAZE HIM, BUT HE QUICKLY ROLLS THE WINDOW UP. THEY TRY BREAKING THE DRIVER WINDOW, BUT OSCAR PUTS THE TRUCK IN REVERSE, AND BACKS INTO THE WALL OF AN APARTMENT, THEN PUTS IT IN DRIVE, AND FLOORS IT! I DON'T KNOW HOW HE MISSED HITTING MY TRUCK. HE ALMOST RAN DOWN THE GUYS TOO. NOW, THE CHASE WAS ON. HE ROCKETED OUT OF THE APARTMENTS, DRIVING LIKE A MADMAN. ONE OF MY PARTNERS WAS ON THE PHONE WITH 911, GIVING THEM DIRECTIONS OF THE PURSUIT. THE COPS WERE HEADED OUR WAY. THIS WAS JUST LIKE IN A MOVIE SCENE. OSCAR THE MADMAN, TOOK US THROUGH STOP SIGNS, RED LIGHTS; THROUGH PARKING LOTS, RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS; EVEN DOWN DEAD END STREETS; AT ONE POINT DOWN A DEAD END, THERE WAS A STEEL GATE; AND ON BOTH SIDES OF THAT GATE WERE 2 BIG STEEL POSTS. HE RAN RIGHT THROUGH THE GATE! I THINK HE THEN REALIZED, THAT HE WAS HEADED INTO A CREEK, AND HE TURNED AROUND, AND HEADED OUT. 'ROUND AND 'ROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD WE WENT. WE WENT DOWN SOME STREETS SEVERAL TIMES. HE WAS LOOKING FOR A PLACE TO BAIL OUT. HE COULDN'T SHAKE ME. AND HE KNEW THE COPS WERE ON THE WAY. HE MADE ONE LAST 'STRAIGHT-AWAY-RUN' DOWN A STREET, WITH ME RIGHT BEHIND HIM. AT THIS PARTICULAR TIME, THERE WAS A MAN MOWING LAWNS WITH A PUSH MOWER. THE MAN HAD STARTED ACROSS THE STREET WITH HIS MOWER, WHEN HE SAW THE SPEEDING VEHICLE COMING RIGHT AT HIM. HE LEFT THE MOWER IN THE STREET, AND RAN! OSCAR MISSED THE MOWER; I DID NOT. I LOOKED IN MY SIDE MIRROR, AND LAWN MOWER PARTS WERE FLYING EVERYWHERE. AS OSCAR ROUNDED THE NEXT CORNER, HE PULLED TO THE CURB, AND BOLTED AND RAN TO A CORNER HOUSE. I JUMPED THE CURB, AND DROVE RIGHT INTO THE FRONT YARD; AND GUYS BOLTED FROM THE TRUCK AFTER HIM. OSCAR COULD NOT GET OVER A HIGH WOODEN FENCE, SO HE BROKE INTO THAT NEIGHBOR'S SIDE DOOR ON THE HOUSE. THE 'MAN OF THE HOUSE' HAPPENED TO BE IN THE ROOM AT THAT TIME! OSCAR STARTED WRESTLING WITH THE MAN, AND THE MAN'S WIFE WAS THERE TOO. SHE STARTED SCREAMING, AND RAN FOR THE PHONE TO CALL 911. BUT THE COPS WERE ALREADY THERE. MY GUYS HAD THEIR TASERS OUT, READY TO DEPLOY THEM AT OSCAR. WHEN OSCAR SAW THE LASER BEAM ON HIM, HE JUST GAVE UP, AND LET GO OF THE MAN. THEY PUT HIM ON THE GROUND, HANDCUFFED HIM, AND LED HIM OUT OF THE HOUSE. OSCAR WAS PUT INSIDE ONE OF THE PATROL CARS, WHILE THINGS WERE SORTED OUT. AS IT TURNED OUT, OSCAR WAS CHARGED WITH BREAKING AND ENTERING, WHICH WAS A FELONY. THE OFFICERS WANTED TO GIVE HIM TO US FOR TRANSPORT BACK TO GEORGIA, BUT THEIR SUPERVISOR CALLED THE D.A., AND THE D.A. SAID, "NOPE! CAN'T GIVE HIM TO THE BOUNTY HUNTERS. HE MUST GO TO JAIL HERE IN HOUSTON." AND SO, OSCAR WENT WITH THE OFFICERS. HE WAS PUT ON A $10,000 BOND. HE CAN'T BE EXTRADITED BACK TO GEORGIA, UNLESS THE GEORGIA D.A. GIVES PERMISSION FOR FULL EXTRADITION. MORE THAN LIKELY, OSCAR WILL BOND OUT IN TEXAS; AND ONCE HE DOES, HE AND HIS WIFE WILL PACK UP AND LEAVE FOR PARTS UNKNOWN. NOT ONLY DID WE NOT EARN ANY PAY ON THIS CASE, MY TRUCK WAS PUT THROUGH HELL. MY BRAKES SHOES GOT SO HOT, THAT MY HUBCAP MELTED OFF MY TRUCK! BOTTOM LINE HERE, IS THAT WE DID NOT FAIL IN OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO CAPTURE OSCAR. THE STATE OF GEORGIA DID NOT COVER THEIR ASS. I WANT TO PERSONALLY THANK THE GUYS WHO HELPED WITH THIS ARREST. A JOB WELL DONE TO: JIM"THE RHINO" RICHARDS, MARK"ONE-SHOT" BRAY, AND DARRYL"THE HAMMER" PEARSON. AND AS FOR OSCAR, WELL, HE WILL STILL BE LOOKING OVER HIS SHOULDER.