Man's appeal denied in wild high-speed chase that injured woman

A state appellate court panel has rejected an ex-con's appeal involving a case stemming from him leading police on a wild, high-speed chase that ended after his car struck several vehicles, including one that overturned and left a woman injured.

In a ruling Wednesday, a three-justice panel from California's 2nd District Court of Appeal upheld a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge's decision to turn down the defense's request for mental health diversion for Tyree Francis.

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Francis, now 32, was sentenced in March 2023 to 19 years in state prison after he pleaded no contest to one count each of fleeing a pursuing peace officer while driving recklessly and assault with a deadly weapon and two counts of assault on a peace officer in connection with the Feb. 8, 2017, pursuit.

The defendant also admitted that he had a prior strike for burglary in 2013 and that he personally inflicted great bodily injury on the woman whose car overturned.

Francis led police on a high-speed pursuit on the Harbor (110) Freeway, but officers eventually lost sight of him. He was later spotted in a shopping center, where he nearly struck two Los Angeles police officers, authorities said.

One of the officers opened fire after Francis drove toward him. Neither officer was injured, and Francis was not struck by the gunfire.

Francis subsequently struck the vehicle that wound up overturning in a collision caught on police dashcam video, and officers had to pull the injured woman out of her car. She was hospitalized and wound up being out of work for 13 months after the collision, according to Deputy District Attorney Geoff Lewin.

Francis, who had allegedly successfully fled during a police chase the night before, surrendered nearby once the vehicle he was driving became disabled after striking at least two other cars, according to Lewin.

The prosecutor wrote in court papers that the Mercedes-Benz "reached speeds in excess of 100 mph" and that the defendant has "spent all but a few short years of his adult life" behind bars, including a state prison sentence for vehicular manslaughter stemming from a 2013 crash in which a 79-year-old motorist was killed when his truck was hit after Francis tried to pass another car by driving into opposing traffic.

Francis has remained behind bars since his February 2017 arrest.

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