EL DORADO — A Hot Springs man has pleaded no contest for his role in a high-speed chase that led to the police shooting death of his girlfriend.
Joseph Raymond Mitchell pleaded no contest Tuesday to fleeing in a vehicle causing serious injury. The El Dorado News-Times reported that Mitchell was sentenced to 10 years in prison with credit for the nearly two years he’s already served in custody.
Authorities say Mitchell was in police custody in May 2010 when he escaped from a Hot Springs hospital. Authorities say he picked his girlfriend, 47-year-old Belinda Bair of Mountain Pine, and led officers on a high-speed chase.
Authorities opened fire after Mitchell reportedly crashed into the back of a cruiser driven by Ashley County Sheriff David Jones. Bair was killed in the gunfire.