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WARREN -- A Girard man on Wednesday received an indefinite prison sentence after being convicted of felony charges from a June 27 incident where a stolen vehicle tried to ram into a Niles police cruiser -- nearly running over a police officer in the process.
David Maurice Copes, 23, of East Main Street, pleaded guilty to charges of felonious assault and failure to comply with order or signal of a police officer. After waiving his right to a background investigation, Copes was sentenced by Trumbull County Common Pleas Judge W. Wyatt McKay to a term of 45 to 63 months in prison.
Before sentencing, Copes apologized to Niles police, the prosecutor and the judge -- saying he "didn't mean for all this to happen."
"I was just trying to get home. I had lost a child and a sister and I was not in a good place. I am not a menace," Copes told McKay.
McKay said Copes also faces a possible five years of post-release control after serving his prison term.
A Niles report states police were called to Days Inn about 11 a.m June 27 about a 22-year-old woman being assaulted in the carjacking of a 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix. Police chased the vehicle to the intersection of state Route 46 and Vienna Road. Copes almost struck police Lt. Richard Burkey, prosecutors said, before the Grand Prix hit the officer's cruiser, disabling it.
The man ran from the scene, and through the efforts of a police dog, other police jurisdictions and a ping of AT&T cell phones, Copes was arrested later at an apartment on Royal Mall Drive in Niles, a police report states.
Jail records show Copes has been incarcerated since the day of the chase.