Bonners Ferry Local Guide including all of Boundary County Idaho

Woman who stole police SUV sentenced to prison

Saturday, February 24, 2007; DB

A northern Idaho woman who escaped arrest by stealing a Bonners Ferry Police Department sport utility vehicle was sentenced Tuesday to five years in prison. Shannon Lee Kelley will have to serve at least two years of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole, according to court records. Kelley, who also uses the surname McClellan, was facing no fewer than eight criminal charges when she was arrested on Nov. 4, 2006 on the south side of Bonners Ferry. Kelley, 30, was arrested on suspicion of forging checks at Boundary Trading Company. Kelley's hands were cuffed behind her back and she was placed in the back of the SUV while officers checked the van she was driving for additional occupants. While unattended, Kelley reportedly managed to get her cuffed hands in front of her. She then slipped through a loosely latched slider partitioning the back seat from the front and promptly drove off. Police gave chase, but Kelley eluded them and later used a radio in the patrol vehicle to report that she was lost and wanted to turn herself in. At the time, police believed this was a ruse designed to throw officers off her trail. Kelley was found after a couple of days on the lam. The Tahoe she used to effect her getaway was discovered on Katka Mountain. The incident earned Kelley four more criminal charges, bringing the total number to 12. - Full Story