COUNTYWIDE : 2 Teen-Agers Held in 115-Mile Car Chase

Two county teen-agers led police Friday on a car chase that ended near Barstow after authorities laid down a strip of spikes that punctured the tires of their stolen automobile.

The driver, a 15-year-old Anaheim boy, and a 17-year-old Santa Ana girl were arrested on suspicion of possessing a stolen vehicle and evading police officers. They were held in San Bernardino County Juvenile Hall.

“The potential for an accident was great because the driver was all over the freeway,” said Sgt. Dean Hirst of the California Highway Patrol of the 115-mile chase at speeds up to 105 m.p.h.

The suspects’ Chevrolet Spectrum was stopped at 3:30 a.m. near Barstow when a left tire deflated after running over the strip containing needles that lodge in tires. The hollow needles cause the tires to deflate gradually, authorities said.

Police first spotted the teen-agers in a vehicle cruising alleys with its lights out in the area of Baker Avenue and Gilbert Street in Fullerton, Police Sgt. Joe Klein said. When the officers tried to stop the car at 2:12 a.m., it sped off.

The suspects headed east on the Riverside Freeway, turned north on the Corona Freeway (Interstate 15, which becomes the Devore Freeway, then the Barstow Freeway as it heads north). They continued over the Cajon Pass, through Victorville and went half a mile north of Hodge Road, which is about 11 miles south of Barstow, Hirst said.

In San Bernardino County, CHP officers replaced Fullerton police in the pursuit. No injuries were reported.