Officers Wound Man After High-Speed Chase, Standoff

A man who fled in his car after police responded to a potential domestic violence incident led officers on a 100-mph chase early Sunday before being captured near Bakersfield, where his tires were flattened and he was shot in the leg, authorities said.

The chase began about 2:20 a.m., when police arrived at a home in the 11000 block of Allegheny Street, said LAPD spokesman Vince Aguirre. The suspect, Michael Verceles, had allegedly called a former girlfriend who lived at the residence and threatened her. As Verceles arrived, he spotted police and sped off in his car.

He led officers onto three freeways and then into the streets before speeding onto the Golden State Freeway northbound near the Van Nuys Boulevard exit.

During the chase Verceles pulled out a gun, believed to be a .357 magnum, and fired rounds at the police officers, said Aguirre.

LAPD officers trailed Verceles almost to the Gorman area before they dropped the chase, and CHP officers from the Bakersfield division took over. At about 3 a.m., at California 99 just south of Bakersfield, Verceles was forced to stop when his tires were flattened by a spiked strip officers laid across the road.

For nearly two hours the distraught Verceles refused to leave the car, and at one point held the gun to his head, Aguirre said.

After a negotiator arrived, Verceles got out of the car but still refused to surrender. Officers then fired a “bean bag round” at Verceles, striking him in the chest.

Aguirre said the bean bag is meant to disable suspects and feels like “a freight train hitting you in the chest.”

However, Verceles continued the standoff. A CHP officer then shot Verceles once in the leg. He was taken to Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield and was in fair condition Sunday afternoon. It was uncertain what charges he will face.

Times correspondent Sharon Moeser contributed to this article.