By RAELYNN RICARTE
News staff writer
March 31, 2007

Hood River County Sheriff Deputy Pete Hughes had a near-death experience on Wednesday.

He was forced to leap over a guardrail along Interstate 84 to avoid being struck by a speeding vehicle driven by a man later identified as James Thomas Ruiz, 39.

Ruiz, a California resident, hurtled at 110 miles per hour. He was attempting to avoid a police pursuit that had begun near Wood Village, 47 miles west.

“I had just grabbed the rope (to the spike strip) and was standing between the white fog line and the metal guardrail when I saw him. He was probably 100 yards away and then he pulled onto the shoulder and appeared to be headed right toward me,” said Hughes.

“I jumped over the guard rail when he was, at the most, about 75 feet away. All I could think about was that I had to get out of the way. The next few seconds are pretty hard to remember.”

Deputy Matt English and Hughes had both sped to the Wyeth exit about 12:30 p.m. on March 28. They had been alerted by dispatch that a 1994 red Saturn was headed into the Gorge with Multnomah County deputies close behind.

Ruiz was reportedly driving aggressively enough that law enforcement officials considered him a danger to other motorists. In addition, he was raising his arm through the open sunroof to give the finger to the two deputies on his tail.

A passing trucker had reported seeing a gun inside the vehicle, which had been reported as stolen.

English and Hughes pulled their patrol cars onto the shoulder of the eastbound onramp at Wyeth. They each ran with spike strips across the freeway and set the tire deflation devices down next to the center Jersey barrier. The deputies then dodged traffic to get back to the right shoulder. They were both holding a rope that would be used to pull the metal tacks into position as the suspect vehicle passed by.

However, Hughes said a gust of wind lifted the ropes off the pavement and they caught on the underside of a passing truck. English’s strip was destroyed and Hughes’ rope broke. However, he was able to snatch the remaining length, which was just enough to maneuver the strip. By that time, Ruiz was almost upon him.

English had returned to his vehicle to join the chase if necessary. He was unsure if the single spike strip would be enough to slow Ruiz down.

He did not see what was happening with Hughes until the deputy dove over the guard rail. He had managed to yank the strip onto the freeway before retreating.

Hughes said Ruiz jerked the wheel in what appeared to be an attempt to avoid the sharp tacks. He then lost control of the Saturn and clipped another car before hitting the center barrier. The Saturn then careened another 500 feet before coming to a rest on the roadway shoulder.

“When the car went by I saw this woman being thrown around the inside like a rag doll. Stuff was flying everywhere — it all seemed to be happening in slow motion,” said English.

The front of the wrecked vehicle was facing Hughes and English when Ruiz and a female passenger, later identified as Pracilla Diana Velasquez, 19, also of California, jumped out.

The scene quickly became chaotic since three other vehicles had also hit the spike strip and had to pull over. Multnomah County deputies, who had backed off while the tacks were deployed, screeched to stop moments later.

Because of the reported gun sighting, all four deputies drew their weapons and cautiously approached the car. A video recording of the incident shows Ruiz taunting them briefly and then putting his hand into the waistband of his pants, as if reaching for a gun. He then turned while walking backwards and ran for the nearby forest.

“We really didn’t know whether or not he had a weapon so we had to assume that he did. And it wouldn’t have been safe to follow right behind him into the trees,” said English.

Gresham police were only five minutes away with a dog team — anticipating a pursuit — so he decided to wait for backup.

For the next few hours, English and other officers scrambled through heavy underbrush in rugged terrain on the hunt for Ruiz.

“I had to crawl on my hands and knees at one point,” said English.

Meanwhile, Hughes helped deputies subdue Velasquez, who had also attempted to flee and was putting up a vigorous fight to avoid an arrest.

She reportedly kicked out the back window of a patrol car in an attempt to jump out on a return trip to Portland, where she faces numerous charges.

Hughes also searched the wrecked car, recovering drug paraphernalia and razor blades turned into makeshift knives — but he found no gun.

As news of the search went out over the airwaves, motorists began calling in sightings of a man walking along the freeway. Some of these descriptions fit Ruiz and others didn’t.

One man was briefly detained after he was sighted walking along the freeway guardrail.

The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office provided a second dog team as the afternoon wore on. The Hood River City Police and Oregon State Patrol also lent assistance.

Ruiz was finally spotted near milepost 48 about 7:30 p.m. and English, now back in his patrol car, was just two miles away. He was joined by OSP Trooper Gavin McIllvenna in a race to the site.

McIllvenna decided to search on foot and saw Ruiz near the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. However, the trooper was attacked when he attempted to arrest the suspect.

English, a short distance ahead, was alerted about the fight on the tracks by the engineer of a stopped train. He was told that a conductor had hopped off the locomotive to help the embattled officer.

Ruiz, who has a long criminal history, was finally taken into custody and transported to NORCOR. He faces a host of charges in Hood River County, including reckless driving, assault, attempt to elude (both in vehicle and on foot) and resisting arrest.

“I feel like I’ve been run over by a Mack truck,” said English on Thursday morning.

He and Hughes were involved in another high-speed pursuit to the west of Hood River just three weeks ago. English believes the chases are random incidents and the frequency is unlikely to continue. Hughes isn’t so sure.