photo by: Kansas Department of Corrections

Steven Carl Drake II

A Lawrence man who is currently facing charges in multiple cases for running from police and damaging property in the process was allegedly behind the wheel again on Monday driving on the river levee trail before crashing into a fire hydrant and stopping in a field.

The man, Steven Carl Drake Jr., 49, is charged in Douglas County District Court with one count of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer with a motor vehicle, fleeing from law enforcement, criminal damage and criminal threat, all felonies, according to the jail booking log. He is also charged with driving with a suspended license, a misdemeanor.

A sheriff’s deputy attempted to stop Drake around 2:40 p.m. Monday near Second and Locust streets in connection with a Lawrence domestic battery incident, according to a news release from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. The deputy also knew that Drake did not have a valid driver’s license, the release said.

Instead of stopping, Drake is alleged to have accelerated away from the deputy toward the southbound lanes of the Kansas River Bridge and then to have slammed on his brakes, causing a collision with the deputy’s pursuing vehicle, the release said. Drake then reportedly turned eastbound and jumped the median onto the levee trail in North Lawrence. George Diepenbrock, spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, said in an email to the Journal-World that Drake left the levee trail near North Third Street before turning onto Elm Street.

The deputy observed Drake drive through a resident’s yard in the 900 block of Elm Street and damage a fire hydrant before driving into the adjacent field where Drake’s vehicle became disabled and the deputy was able to take him into custody. Drake was examined by medics and taken to the hospital before he was cleared to be taken to the jail, the release said.

From the intersection of North Ninth and Elm Streets in North Lawrence, tire tracks can be seen through the yard and into the field across the street. The damaged hydrant had been removed by Tuesday morning, leaving a small hole in the ground. The Journal-World has reached out to Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical to learn more about the hydrant damage and the impact on public safety in the area.

photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Tire tracks leading to a damaged field caused by a vehicle fleeing from police on Aug. 27, 2024, at the corner of N. Ninth and Elm Streets in North Lawrence.

Drake appeared in court Tuesday afternoon on the new charges, where he was appointed defense attorney Angela Keck. He is being held on a $100,000 cash or surety bond, according to court records.

Drake is also scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday, Sept. 3, for a preliminary hearing in three Douglas County felony flee and elude cases for two incidents in 2022 and another in January.

Drake is also facing another felony flee and elude count in Jefferson County from 2022. He was arrested in Jefferson County earlier this month for failing to appear in connection with the 2022 case and posted a $5,000 surety bond on Aug. 19. He is next scheduled to appear on that case on Sept. 19.

Drake has felony convictions in Douglas County for flee and elude, endangering a child and theft. In Jefferson County, he has felony convictions for forgery, obstruction and aggravated interference of parental custody, according to Kansas Department of Corrections records. He was recently acquitted in Douglas County District Court of an attempted murder charge, as the Journal-World reported.