By Abby Nadeau
Forest Lake Times

A high-speed chase ended on US-61 in Forest Lake Thursday, Feb. 23, when a fleeing, male suspect swerved off the road, just north of the US-8 bridge and was later taken into custody.

Carl Lee McCurdy, 21, of Circle Pines was taken to the Chisago County jail and charged with fleeing an officer and obstruction of legal process.

McCurdy was arrested after he fled an officer who tried to stop him for a traffic violation in North Branch.

ìThe officer recognized the car from an earlier complaint of reckless driving,î Lt. Stephen Forner said. ìHe also clocked McCurdy going 63 mph in a 55 mph zone.î

When the officer tried to pull him over, McCurdy took off in his Volkswagon Jetta, down CR-30 through Stacy, Wyoming and then US-61 in Forest Lake.

Speeds reached in excess of 100 mph.

Forest Lake Police assisted in the hour long chase by putting stop sticks down on US-61.

ìBecause of the speeds he was going at we put stop sticks out to slow him down,î Forest Lake Police Chief Clark Quiring said. ìHe swerved to miss the first ones and had to swerve again, but he lost control of his vehicle and ended up in the ditch.î

A short standoff ensued when McCurdy refused to get out of his vehicle.

According to the Forest Lake Police report, Scott Graff, along with other officers, approached McCurdyís vehicle on either side and proceeded to extract him.

The report read that upon reaching the vehicle Graff deployed his taser on McCurdy who was then promptly removed from the vehicle and handcuffed.

When asked why he didnít stop, McCurdy told police he didnít have a driverís license.

ìHe [McCurdy] only had a Minnesota ID,î Forner said. ìI guess he never took the time to get a license.î

The whole chase was caught on tape by the newly installed in-squad video camera.

ìWith the video it is hard to dispute any part of the chase,î Forner said. ìEverything was caught on video.î

McCurdy is currently being held at the Chisago County jail.

Police Departments from Ramsey County, Chisago County, the State Patrol, Forest Lake and North Branch all assisted in the apprehension of McCurdy.