New Stanton man jailed after 18-mile police pursuit that began in Jeannette

A 38-year-old New Stanton man is in the Westmoreland County Prison without bond on drug and traffic charges. Police arrested him following an 18-mile pursuit on Route 30 that started in Jeannette and ended at a roadblock in Forest Hills, according to court documents.

The incident started about 1:45 a.m. Wednesday when police attempted to pull over a 2007 Ford 500 sedan driven by James F. “Bubba” Gilbert near St. Clair Street and Ridge Avenue for speeding and driving with his high-beam lights on.

Instead of stopping, the car took off, ran through stop signs and went the wrong way down one-way streets until reaching Route 30, where it fled west toward Pittsburgh, Patrolman Derek Manley reported.

During the pursuit, Gilbert’s speed “reached 107 mph” in the Adamsburg area of Hempfield, where the posted speed limit is 45 mph, Manley reported.

At one point, Manley said Gilbert “spiked his brakes which was believed to be an attempt to cause me to rear end the vehicle.” Manley avoided the collision.

Police from North Huntingdon, North Versailles and Forest Hills joined the pursuit.

North Versailles placed spike strips in the roadway, which damaged the front tires of the sedan. Still, Gilbert continued driving west, sometimes in the eastbound lane to avoid traffic and passing through red lights.

Manley reported that as the chase approached the Westinghouse Bridge, one of Gilbert’s tires “dislodged from the rim, striking my patrol car.”

Gilbert’s vehicle eventually stopped along Route 30 at the Bevington Road intersection, where Forest Hills police set up a roadblock.

“I only ran because I have drugs on me,” Manley said Gilbert told police as he was handcuffed and taken into custody.

The woman in the car wasn’t charged.

Police seized multiple plastic bags from a zippered bag inside Gilbert’s vehicle containing unspecified amounts of suspected crack cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana. Police also seized suspected drug paraphernalia from inside the vehicle, according to police reports.

Gilbert is charged with fleeing and eluding police, delivery, manufacturing and possession of a controlled substance, reckless endangerment, resisting arrest, driving on a suspended license and numerous traffic violations.

A preliminary hearing after Wednesday’s arrest is scheduled Oct. 21.

District Judge Joseph DeMarchis ordered Gilbert, who has previously resided in South Carolina, held in the county jail without bail after deeming him “a danger to the community.”

Last month, Gilbert waived a drug case to trial in connection with his July arrest for possession of a controlled substance. He also has a preliminary hearing scheduled Nov. 14 on charges of theft and receiving stolen property related to an incident in New Stanton, according to online dockets.