An Arnold-area man has been charged for allegedly injuring a Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputy on Thursday, May 1, while attempting to avoid being arrested. The man also allegedly fled from Arnold Police two months earlier when an officer attempted to stop a vehicle he was driving in the city, court records show.
Caleb Carl Sowell, 29, who lives just west of Arnold, on Thursday was charged for second-degree assault of a special victim, a class B felony that is punishable by five to 15 years in prison. The Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office also charged him for resisting arrest, a class A misdemeanor that carries a penalty of up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,000, according to court documents.
The Prosecuting Attorney’s Office had already charged Sowell on April 16 for aggravated fleeing a stop or detention, a class D felony that carries a penalty of up to seven years in prison; failure to register a motor vehicle, a class B misdemeanor that is punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up $1,000; and driving with a revoked license, a class D misdemeanor that carries a penalty of a fine of up to $500, court records show.
As of this afternoon, May 2, Sowell was being held without bond at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro, court documents show.
On Thursday, deputies went to a home in the 3800 block of Parkway Lane west of Arnold to arrest Sowell on the warrant issued for fleeing from the Arnold Police. Sowell was in the backyard, and when deputies approached him, he ran toward the backdoor of the home, the case’s probable-cause statement said.
Sowell was able to get inside the house and shut the door. A deputy, who was chasing Sowell, raised his left arm to keep the door open, but his arm hit the door’s glass window, which shattered, the report said.
The deputy’s arm was cut, and he was taken to an area hospital, where six stitches were required to close the laceration, according to the report.
Sowell fled from law enforcement officers in February, according to a probable-cause statement filed by the Arnold Police.
An officer at about 11 p.m. Feb. 21 saw Sowell get into a vehicle that had only one license plate, which was allegedly registered to a different vehicle. The officer attempted to stop Sowell, but he sped away from the officer, the report said.
Sowell did not turn on his headlights while fleeing from the officer, and his license was revoked at the time of the attempt stop, according to the report.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorneys Steven Jerrell and Justin Owens are prosecuting the cases, according to court records.