BEVERLY HILLS—A man responsible for leading police on a low-speed car chase through West Los Angeles in May was sentenced to two years in prison on Saturday, September 4. Gerjuan Deshon Harmon, 27, was suspected of burglarizing two UCLA dorm rooms on the night of May 1, before winding through Beverly Hills, Inglewood and Santa Monica with several police units on his trail.
According to a press release from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, police responded to an initial call of a man drunk driving in West Los Angeles around 11:30 p.m. on May 1. The vehicle he was driving was identified as a 2010 black Range Rover reported stolen on April 19. After police tried to stop the vehicle with lights and sirens, Harmon began his low-speed journey around West LA, even entertaining club patrons by leading police up and down Sunset Boulevard for several minutes. Finally, Harmon abandoned the stolen vehicle at the Santa Monica Pier where he jumped from the pier and into the beach. Police apprehended Harmon around 1:45 a.m. after coaxing him out of the water without incident.
According to the LA County District Attorney’s Office, Harmon “had several prior burglary convictions,” and was initially charged with two counts of first-degree burglary, one count of car theft and one count of felony police evasion. During his sentencing, under Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mark Windham, Harmon pleaded no contest to first-degree burglary. In exchange for pleading no-contest, Harmon’s charges for car theft, felony police evasion and a separate burglary charge were dismissed.