Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

On May 25, 2021, at about 9:46 p.m., a Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputy on patrol in the area of Central Avenue and School Road, in McKinleyville, observed a vehicle stopped in the middle of the roadway.

As the deputy approached the vehicle to offer assistance, the vehicle accelerated and fled at a high rate of speed. The deputy pursued the vehicle for approximately 1.8 miles, observing the vehicle commit multiple vehicle code violations. The vehicle yielded near Central and Horrell Avenues, then began to back up at a high rate of speed, colliding with the deputy’s patrol car.

Deputies conducted a high-risk traffic stop on the vehicle following the collision. The driver of the vehicle, 46-year-old David Andrew Niedrich, was detained. The California Highway Patrol (CHP) was requested to respond to conduct a DUI evaluation and collision investigation. Niedrich was later arrested by CHP officers and booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol (VC 23152(a)) and evading a peace officer (VC 2800.2).

Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.