HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. (WGXA) -- A Perry man is now banned from Houston County and will spend 15 years in prison for fleeing police in a cross-county high-speed chase in June.
According to the Houston County District Attorney's Office, 59-year-old Willis Jermaine Curry Jr., a seven-time convicted felon, pleaded guilty to stealing a vehicle and taking it on a chase with multiple law enforcement agencies while driving without a license.
The D.A.'s office says on June 18, Curry stole a 2023 Kia Sorento from a La Quinta Inn parking lot on Plaza Drive in Perry. The victim of the theft, who was visiting from out of town, reported the stolen vehicle to police, and a BOLO was issued.
Using flock cameras and Kia GPS tracking, several hours later, they were able to locate the vehicle near Cross Point Baptist Church off Perry Parkway. Before officers could make contact with Curry, he got back into the car and led authorities on a "dangerous high-speed chase" down the roadway.
The D.A.'s office says the defendant ran a red light, drove on the wrong side of the road, and "erratically" weaved through traffic, reaching speeds of over 100 miles per hour. Perry Officers had to stop pursuing Curry due to heavy congestion. They then called for assistance from the Houston County Sheriff's Office and other law enforcement officers to find the stolen vehicle.
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The suspect was spotted heading north on I-75 near the Russell Parkway exit, and the pursuit continued as he drove through Peach, Crawford and Bibb counties.
The chase finally ended on the Bibb- Crawford County line after a deputy successfully performed a PIT maneuver. Curry was detained, and the officer discovered he had been driving without a license.
"Willis Curry is a repeat offender whose reckless actions put innocent lives at risk across multiple counties," said Houston County District Attorney Eric Edwards. "A stolen car may be able to be replaced, but the danger of a 100-mile-an-hour chase through our community could have cost lives."
Curry was sentenced to 20 years, with 15 years in prison and five on probation, after pleading guilty to Fleeing or Attempting to Elude a Police Officer, one count of Theft by Receiving Stolen Property, and one count of Driving Without a License.
"This office will not allow career criminals to continue jeopardizing public safety on our roadways," Edwards added. "Thanks to the coordinated work of our law enforcement partners, Curry will now spend the next 15 years in prison and will be banished from Houston County. That is the only appropriate outcome for someone who has shown time and again that he cannot follow the law."