Police chase ends with guns drawn

Deepa Bharath

A pursuit that began in Riverside ended almost two hours later

outside Triangle Square on Friday afternoon, backing up traffic for

miles on the southbound Costa Mesa Freeway, officials said.

The chase began at about 2:10 p.m. in Riverside, California

Highway Patrol Officer Stacy Willits said. Riverside sheriff’s

deputies tried to stop 46-year-old Scot Alexander Breithaupt of

Murietta on suspicion of driving under the influence, she said.

But he drove away in his green 1993 Honda Del Sol on the westbound

Riverside Freeway, she said.

“The pursuit then moved into Orange County, and we became

involved,” Willits said. The chase continued onto the southbound

Costa Mesa Freeway.

“The pursuit, for the most part, was not high-speed, and the

driving was not reckless,” Willits said.

But that changed when it reached Costa Mesa, she said. The driver

of the Honda sideswiped a car and a pole north of 19th Street and

then rammed into a van that was parked outside Triangle Square near

the intersection of Newport Boulevard and Broadway, Willits said.

Costa Mesa police arrested Breithaupt on suspicion of driving

under the influence of drugs and for being in possession of rock

cocaine, Sgt. Scott May said. He was also wanted for a parole

violation, he said.

Breithaupt was taken to Hoag Hospital for a medical clearance and

later booked in Costa Mesa city jail.

Costa Mesa police helped CHP officers with the felony stop,

Willits said.

“Any time they make a stop like that, the guns are drawn,” she

said.

“It was a scary sight,” said Rod Jeheber, a Costa Mesa resident

who was stuck in traffic on Newport Boulevard. “There was a

helicopter and sirens blaring. Some of the officers had rifles in

their hands.”

CHP officers carry assault rifles, but Costa Mesa police officers

usually carry either handguns or shotguns, May said.

Jeheber said he and many others felt trapped in that situation.

“All I could do was stay down,” he said. “We couldn’t move. It was

all jammed.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at [email protected].