Man Accused Of Leading Hemet Police Chase Denies Charges

Murrieta CA

26 January, 2021

12:04 PM

Description

HEMET, CA — A 27-year-old man accused of leading deputies on a pursuit in the Hemet area while drunk, driving into oncoming traffic until crashing into a sign, pleaded not guilty Monday to felony evading and other offenses. Daniel George Hardesty of Golden, Colorado, was arrested Wednesday following the chase that began in East Hemet. Along with the evading count, Hardesty is charged with eluding a peace officer and driving under the influence. Hardesty was arraigned before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Timothy Hollenhorst, who scheduled a felony settlement conference for Feb. 11 at the Banning Justice Center and lowered the defendant's bail from $100,000 to $75,000. Hardesty was being held at the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning but made bail Monday, jail records show. According to sheriff's Sgt. Brad Farwell, about 5 p.m. Wednesday, deputies spotted Hardesty driving erratically and attempted to stop him, but he allegedly sped away westbound into Hemet. "He fled from law enforcement and drove in a reckless manner, including running stop signs and driving into oncoming traffic," Farwell said. Hardesty lost control of his sedan in the 900 block of East Florida Avenue, near State Street, plowing into a street sign, at which point his vehicle stalled, according to Farwell. Deputies immediately took him into custody. Hardesty was not injured, nor were any deputies or other motorists, Farwell said. Hardesty has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.