There are several ways for a driver to make a wrong turn. Shreveport Police say Jamie Scott managed the literal version first, then spent the rest of the night making the metaphorical one.
At approximately 9:31 p.m. on August 15, an officer conducting a directed patrol near downtown Shreveport spotted a Chevrolet Tahoe traveling the wrong way on a one-way street near Market Street. The officer attempted a traffic stop, but police say Scott refused to stop.
What followed was a pursuit through both Caddo and Bossier parishes. According to police, Scott ran red lights, left the roadway, and committed numerous other traffic violations along the way.
The Tahoe eventually reached Johnson Street and Texas Avenue, where the geography became considerably less cooperative. Police say Scott crashed into a fence after reaching a dead end and was taken into custody.
The Tahoe Runs Out of Road Before Scott Runs Out of Charges
Shreveport Police’s video follows portions of the pursuit from an officer’s perspective, with the Tahoe continuing through city streets as patrol vehicles follow. The department paired the footage with Roger Alan Wade’s rather prescient “If You’re Gonna Be Dumb, You Gotta Be Tough.”
Unfortunately, the video could not be embedded into the article.
Whatever Scott’s intended destination might have been, police say the pursuit ultimately brought him to the dead end at Johnson Street and Texas Avenue. The Tahoe crashed into a fence there, ending a pursuit that had already crossed parish lines.
Fortunately, the department reported that nobody was seriously injured despite the driving involved. That is a particularly consequential detail when red lights, departures from the roadway and a multi-parish police pursuit are sharing the same chronology.
Scott was arrested and charged with aggravated flight from an officer, possession of Schedule II narcotics, operating a vehicle with a suspended license and improper lane usage. Those are charges rather than convictions, and Scott is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Police Say Scott Has Been Arrested More Than 40 Times in One Parish
The most striking number in the department’s account might not involve the pursuit at all. Shreveport Police say a review of Scott’s criminal history showed more than 40 previous arrests in neighboring Bossier Parish and approximately six by their own department.
An arrest history does not establish guilt in those previous cases, nor did the department’s post provide their dispositions. It does, however, explain why one particular detail quickly commandeered the discussion underneath the video.
Police also used Scott’s arrest to highlight the directed patrol operation that put the officer near downtown Shreveport in the first place. These operations concentrate officers in areas experiencing increased criminal activity rather than relying exclusively on officers encountering something during ordinary patrol.
According to the department, directed patrols have helped officers identify dangerous drivers, wanted people, illegal firearms and narcotics. In this instance, police say it began with something considerably easier to spot: a Chevrolet Tahoe headed the wrong way down a one-way street.
Commenters Fixate on the Arrest History and the Pursuit Itself
The department’s claim that Scott had been arrested more than 40 times in Bossier Parish became an immediate point of contention. “Arrested 46 times?” one commenter wrote after apparently combining the figures provided by police, before sarcastically suggesting authorities release him so the number could reach 47.
Others questioned how someone could accumulate that many arrests and directed their frustration toward prosecutors, judges and the broader criminal justice system rather than police. Several predicted Scott would quickly return to the street, although the department’s post does not establish what will happen with his current case or explain the outcomes of his previous arrests.
The pursuit itself generated a separate argument. Some commenters supported Shreveport Police and blamed fleeing drivers for creating the danger, while others argued that police pursuit policies can increase the risk to motorists and questioned whether officers should continue chasing suspects under such circumstances.
A few viewers found a less weighty detail to contemplate. Several noticed that the Tahoe traveled near the courthouse during the pursuit, with one commenter calling the route a “metaphor.” The journey eventually led somewhere more definitive: a dead end.