Wielder of Shotgun Caught After Chase

A man who fired a shotgun at pursuing officers led police on a chase from El Monte through Orange County to northern San Diego County, where he ran out of gas and was captured Tuesday morning, authorities said.

Michael Martin Jennings, 27, was at the El Monte police-community relations office about 9 a.m., yelling and attracting officers’ attention, police said. They followed Jennings when he drove off, having spotted a shotgun on the front seat of his 1987 Cadillac, police said.

After Jennings refused to pull over as ordered, El Monte police asked for help from the California Highway Patrol when the chase reached the San Gabriel River Freeway.

Jennings drove south to the San Diego Freeway, and continued south on Interstate 5 at the El Toro Y, the CHP reported.

Jennings tried to run other drivers off the road several times, the CHP said, and was seen drinking alcohol and brandishing his shotgun during the trip.

The chase peaked at 75 mph near the Camino Capistrano freeway exit. And as the pursuit moved into San Diego County, Jennings fired his shotgun six times out the driver’s window, and then blew out the passenger-side window, the CHP said.

He tossed the shotgun out the window onto the median about a mile north of Las Pulgas Road, about 12 miles south of the Orange County line, the CHP said. He finally ran out of gas south of the Las Pulgas Road underpass, just before the CHP was going to lay spikes on the road to flatten his tires, the agency said. He was arrested at 10:23 a.m. and held on suspicion of driving under the influence, felony evading arrest, discharging a firearm and assault with a deadly weapon.