A man wanted for fleeing from a fatal crash in Pike County earlier this year was captured this week.
28-year-old Jerry D. Shields, of Virgie, was arrested Wednesday evening at a residence on Billups Drive in Pikeville. Court documents said Kentucky State Police responded to the residence in an attempt to locate Shields, who had active warrants for his arrest.
Shields was indicted in May after allegedly being involved in a crash at Virgie that same month that resulted in the death of Paul Newsome. Officials said Shields’ vehicle collided with Newsome’s vehicle, and Sheilds fled the scene on-foot. Newsome died several days later from his injuries.
Shields is facing a felony charge of leaving the scene of an accident. He was arrested in another state earlier this year, but officials in Pike County declined to extradite him back to Kentucky, citing safety concerns for the officers who would have traveled to pick Shields up.
Shields is currently lodged in the Pike County Detention Center.