Wednesday evening a Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy spotted a silver Nissan Altima traveling north on U.S. 1 near Belle Terre Boulevard, with its tag light out. The deputy initiated a traffic stop. By the time the Nissan pulled over and the deputy was walking toward the driver’s side, the deputy noticed that the Nissan had not been put in park.
The deputy walked around to the passenger side, at which point the Nissan took off, crossed the median and turned south. The deputy reported that the driver’s side window was down, giving the deputy a clear view of the driver, later identified as Markee Webb, 24, of Interlachen. Keydra Daynay Lyons, 29, of Gainesville, was his passenger. The deputy heard her scream.
By the time the chase was over, both Webb and Lyons had been booked at the Flagler County jail, Webb on a felony charge of aggravated fleeing and eluding and two misdemeanor charges, and Lyons on a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest. The chase took place in the area of Princeton Village, the assisted living facility.
Also booked was Contina Smith, 47, of Interlachen, who was not in the vehicle but had allegedly falsely reported the Nissan stolen. She did so from a location near downtown Bunnell after getting a call from Webb, her son, who told her he was fleeing from cops. She was booked on a charge of making a false police report.
As the deputy followed Webb, Webb turned north on Belle Terre Boulevard and abandoned the vehicle in a cul de sac near Magnolia Trace Boulevard, along which Princeton Village is located. Deputies established a perimeter, brought in a K-9 unit and Volusia County’s Air One emergency helicopter, which is equipped with a night vision camera. Webb and Lyons were located in the woods and initially refused to come out. Deputies walked in with the dog, and with Air One circling overhead and the sounds of approaching deputies, Webb and Lyons surrendered.
As they were walking out of the woods, Webb in handcuffs, Webb told deputies he’d fled because he was afraid they’d find out he’d been smoking pot. Lyons said she’d run off also because she was afraid.
Meanwhile Webb’s mother had called the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office then the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office to report her vehicle stolen until, after further questioning, she conceded that she knew her son had the Nissan all along.
“It wasn’t enough to flee from a minor traffic violation so they decided to make it a family affair by mom reporting her car stolen even though she knew her son had it,” Sheriff Rick Staly said in a release. “This was a night full of poor decisions but I hope they are able to get back on the right track and get their lives back in order. We want to thank the Volusia Sheriff’s Office for their assistance with the search.”
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Helen says
Seriously!? All those resources for a tag light out? Thats just crazy. I dont know many black people who would feel safe during a police stop in these days and times. Hope they get a break.
wake up Helen says
Helen.. honey.. he fled… that’s why they chased him..not because he’s black. They would’ve chased a white guy too.
Giuseppe Verdi says
Seriously? Why would they run it’s only a tag light? Why would he call mommy and tell her he’s being chased by the po-po? Their break would have been stopping and taking the ticket. This would have prevented 3 people to jail.
Craig says
To “wake up” and “giuseppe” unles you are a young person of color living in these days and times i dont think you get to comment on what they should have done. These young people were more than likely scared for their life , and felt profiled and didnt want to end up like countless other people having their constitutional rights violated by police as we see everyday on video. Justified? Maybe not but to have helicopters and countless law enforcement chasing people who never even comitted an actual crime is pretty nonsensical.
Doug says
Wow Helen, you’re quite the “Monday Morning QB”. Just like “Wake Up Helen” says, THEY FLED!!! And why? After reading what information Flagler Live provided, my guess is the driver was just plain stupid. He clearly deserves what he got, a trip to jail. Stupid is as stupid does.
ASF says
Yeah, right. Get their lives back in order.
Only if they learn the need to do so from actual consequences. This was a full on family affair.
Weldon B. Ryan says
What a Magilla! So a taglight caused this BS causing freight night for these individuals! Police reform is needed. These simple so called infractions give reasons for unwarrented police actions. Like the broken windows theory these minor issues cause much harm to the poor and the disenfranchised and in particular for persons of color.
Outsider says
Until recently, I had an older van with a tag light out. I got pulled over in Palm Coast. The officer informed me the light was out and I was going 13 mph over the speed limit, on Old Kings where it is 35 , and I always find myself going faster than that if I don’t pay attention. I informed him I had a handgun in the car, which I did not need to do. He asked for my concealed carry, again, which I did not need to produce as the weapon was in the console, but I gave it to him regardless, as I felt anything to make him more comfortable with the stop would be better for everyone. He sent me on my way with a verbal warning for the speed and suggested I get a bulb from Walmart. I did, and “fixed” it myself. A few days later, I got pulled over in Bunnell again, as the fix didn’t work out so well. It was night time, so I turned on the interior light so the officer could see it was my wife and daughters in the car, again, to make everyone more comfortable. I told her I would try again, and she just said “Thanks” and sent me on my way. A couple of lessons here: keep all your lights working and there won’t be any reason to get pulled over; anyone that’s watched a couple of episodes of “COPS” knows a burned out bulb is cause for an interaction, and if you smoke weed in your car you probably don’t want that. Secondly, if you do get pulled over and maybe you’ve done something minor against the law, don’t do stupid shit, like drive off at a high rate of speed. Smoking weed will probably get you a ticket, assuming you don’t have a pound in the trunk. Oh, and by the way, don’t report your car stolen if it’s not; that will get you in trouble as well. A little common sense goes a long way. Stop blaming the cops for the stupid behavior of the stupid people.
Fredrick says
Don’t they watch Live PD and Cops?? Plate light not working is going to get you pulled over every time……
Land of no turn signals says says
Great jobs by all sheriffs no shot fired,no protests.
Steve says
Its a Family affair now. Why would you run from a traffic stop even though you are operating lawfully unless there was other nefarious pocessions or substances involved. Pretty unadultlike ya think.? Then the stolen car call. Because that will work. SMH
Jimbo99 says
The pot head isn’t changing his ways. The passenger, she became more of a victim & a hostage when the pot head drove off, although she might’ve been high just the same. She should’ve stayed in/with the car. The Mother is just dumb for trying to cover for the worthless pot head. That’s too bad for them all. Moral of the story, check your lights on the car at the least, it’s a gateway pullover, faulty equipment.
Kris Petersen says
Why punish them? I don’t understand. They’re letting felons out of prisons around the country. They don’t have bond for tons of crimes in NYC now, so why punish these fine people? Just send the cops home so they can collect unemployment with that $300 a week bump. They’d make way more and they’d be safe. Let the criminals roam free to commit more crimes. That seems like a good idea to everyone.
Here we go again says
And while the cops are at home collecting unemployment when someone breaks into you house or shoots at you who are you going to call a social worker to talk to them.
Lamo says
I seen approximately 25 officers canvasing the area. The part that bothered me was, with all the technology today, why wasn’t any information conveyed to the residence of the area’s affected, during this hostile situation??? The only thing made public, was the shift commander’s report, the next day, prior to this release… No excuse, not to warn innocent, law abiding neighbor’s…
Rich says
Sounds like another job well done by F.C.S.O. You just can’t fix stupid!
C’mon man says
Glad these idiots didn’t hurt anyone during their attempt to get away.
JimB says
Glad the idiots chasing them didn’t hurt anyone during their attempt to apprehend a dangerous criminal with a burned out light.
Agkistrodon says
Good thing he ditched whatever he had that made him run in the first place. Dont ride dirty, and make sure your vehicle is in proper working condition. Truth is, one only gets pulled over if there is an initial reason, and one little light bulb is bad news for riding dirty.
Reinhold Schlieper says
The sheriff has a lot to do to win the trust of the population. And we have a lot more to do to finally stop this ridiculous WAR on DRUGS that would inspire such fears. I would think that if I have the license plate of the car that’s missing a light, I can simply mail a reminder notice; I do NOT have to engage in stopping a vehicle or doing a high-speed chase.
Brian says
@Helen – you want to know how to feel safe in a traffic stop? It’s simple stuff. Don’t resist, fight, defy, run, or challenge the officer. Comply with their commands and you’ll be fine, as would have Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and yes, George Floyd. I realize it was difficult for Floyd, as he was high on fentanyl.
PeachesMcGee says
The general consensus is that these two should not held responsible for their actions.
“unwarrented police actions” , “Why punish them?”, “Let the criminals roam free to commit more crimes”
The majority of the citizens enjoy the protection the FCSO provides.
Agnes and Andrew says
Amen brother! FCSO does a great job. The criminals always run. We’ve both been stopped multiple times over the last couple decades for license plate light bulbs being out. Polite to the officers who pulled us over. No escalations when you comply with simple instructions. Our younger son is an officer in Tampa and tells the same story repeatedly; only the criminals flee and elude. Don’t break the law, plain and simple for the majority!
Clark says
What a waste ,over a tail light. Choose your battles. Once they recovered the car they should have moved on not use helicopters and lots of cops. This was a victimless offenese. How much power are we to give the police? Waste of funds, the city can use those funds elsewhere , hense the term , defund the wasteful police .
Outsider says
I think Kris’s question as to “why punish them?” as well as the rest of his/her post, was tongue in cheek.
Weldon Ryan says
What fine thinkers we have here on this thread on Flagler Live. Pseudo laws put on the books to firm up an abusive system of webs to entrap citizenry with benign infractions. A society that permits these kinds of abuse because they’re brainwashed drones who are brainwashed from infancy to elderly. We deserve to live in squalor if we can’t see the flaws. The fringe of this society is expendable . Why do we want to continue to live in this cesspool of systemic abuse? Millions of innocent people are being incarcerated or put in financial jeopardy because of it. And because you are black or run from the police you are automatically branded criminal. Simple minds think in this manner. Black and brown people are the fringe of this society. We are the string that don’t belong so get rid of them. Punish them. Cut them out. We don’t trust and are in fear for our safety. We run and get killed by henchmen with badges. We stay and try to explain and are killed. We complain and are dismissed. Following a lawful order when the law is so flawed? Please!!! If we did that we’d still be sitting in the back of the bus, drinking out of a filthy water fountain or going to a restaurant via the back door and eating next to the trash can in the back. This system is a cesspool of so called legal crap that needs to be scrapped. Then replaced with a humane and intellegent ways of dealing with minutiae with less stress on the human soul. For a blown license plate light? What a waste of finances!
ASF says
When criminal behavior is tolerated, enabled–or even justified–it tends to repeat itself and get worse. I think that is one reason why the legal system exists and why laws need to be be enforced…in all cases, equally.