SHOSHONE, Idaho — It was a perfect example of being in the right place at the right time.
The Shoshone Police Department had a busy week after being involved in two high-speed pursuits and crashes in back-to-back days. The two pursuits weren't even in SPD's jurisdiction; officers just happened to be in both areas at the time.
Shoshone Police Chief Austin Smith says he has five full-time officers in his department. Those officers traveled to Hagerman this week expecting firearms training. They ended up getting some unexpected hands-on experience.
“We train for the unknown and that’s what this was,” Smith said.
On Tuesday, Shoshone officers were headed into Hagerman for lunch when they heard about a high-speed chase. It started in Ada County, made its way through Elmore County and would eventually end in Wendell.
“The officers chasing this vehicle were asking for basically any help that they could get,” Smith said.
So they responded and ended up involved in a multi-county pursuit.
The chase would eventually end at a dairy near Wendell after the suspect stole a pickup truck at gunpoint and continued to evade police. Shots were fired and the suspect was killed.
Though Shoshone officers were involved in the pursuit, Smith said they were not a part of the shooting.
Fast forward one day later and it's the same song, different tune for the Shoshone officers.
They were headed home from Hagerman on Interstate 84 when they learned another high-speed pursuit was headed their way.
This chase started in Twin Falls County, moved through Jerome County and eventually ended near Bliss, where Idaho State Police had set up spike strips and officers from both Gooding City Police and the Gooding County Sheriff's Office, along with the Shoshone Police, had set up roadblocks and tried to keep other traffic out of the way.
“We set up our vehicles - one blocking the on ramp to prevent people from getting in his way or potentially getting in harm’s way," Smith described. "We also used my vehicle to block the slow lane of travel on the interstate.
“The individual was doing about 120 miles per hour when he went down into the median and it caused him to lose control and he ended up going sideways and smashing into my vehicle - we estimate between 80 and 90 miles per hour,” he said.
According to Chief Smith, his vehicle is a total loss. He and one other Shoshone officer suffered minor injuries from the crash debris.
According to ISP, a Gooding officer was also injured but was treated at a local hospital and released.
While Smith is grateful no officers were seriously injured, there is one major disappointment.
“The community rallied together and helped me get some really needed K-9 equipment," he said. "Basically, a heat alarm system and some other things we just had installed in my vehicle not even a month ago. And now it’s a total loss, unfortunately. And that’s the hardest part for me is because we worked so hard with the community and so many people gave donations out of their own hard-earned money.”
Fortunately, Smith's K-9, "Eros," was not in the vehicle at the time it was hit.
Smith added that the two incidents are a perfect example of law enforcement all working together.
“We have a brotherhood and when an officer asks for help... it doesn’t matter where they are," he said. "If someone’s asking for help, we’re gonna go. And that’s just how it is. And it’s been shown time and time again they do the same for us.”
The driver of the vehicle from Wednesday's crash was injured and is being treated at St. Alphonsus in Boise. He is facing multiple charges including felony eluding and assault on a police officer.