Kansas City man charged after 120-mph police pursuit ending with car atop SUV

Christopher Degenhardt, 21, of Kansas City, pleaded not guilty to four felonies after police say he led them on a pursuit early Tuesday morning that ended with Degenhardt’s vehicle on top of a parked SUV.

After his Nissan Altima came to rest on top of the 2010 Ford Escape, Degenhardt exited the car, sat on the door of the Nissan and put a cigarette in his mouth, according to a probable cause statement from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. He then got up and allegedly ran across the roof of the car and onto the roof of a house, where he leaped 15 feet to the ground, according to the statement. He was promptly arrested.

Police say they found about half a gram of cocaine and about 1.8 grams of heroin in his pack of Marlboros.

Degenhardt has been charged with resisting a lawful stop, two counts of possession of a controlled substance and another count of property damage, according to a prosecutor’s complaint filed in Clay County Circuit Court.

Police originally tried to pull Degenhardt over because his temporary plates reportedly had expired. After allegedly trying to escape officers at speeds up to 120 mph, Degenhardt came up short trying to turn onto Moss Avenue in Liberty, police said. The crash flipped the parked SUV and inspired a social media post from the sheriff’s department.

The homeowner told police he thought the crash had done $10,000 in damage to his SUV and $20,000 in damage to his house.

Degenhardt was being held in Clay County jail Wednesday on a $100,000 bond.

This story was originally published July 19, 2017 at 3:46 PM with the headline "Kansas City man charged after 120-mph police pursuit ending with car atop SUV."