By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

Alabaster police arrested a Maylene man on June 25 and charged him with charges of attempted murder, attempted assault, reckless endangerment and attempting to elude police after police said he led them on a high-speed pursuit.

Officers arrested Courtney Sherrod Kennedy after police said they pulled him over on a traffic violation.

“Before being issued the citation, Kennedy sped away,” Alabaster Deputy Police Chief Curtis Rigney wrote in a press release. “The officer attempted to stop Kennedy again but lost sight of his vehicle.”

A short time later, another officer located Kennedy’s vehicle on First Avenue in Alabaster. Kennedy then allegedly refused to yield to officers and led them on a high-speed chase.

During the chase, police said Kennedy attempted to hit a police car head-on before striking a private citizen’s car on First Avenue, causing minor damage. Kennedy then allegedly struck another police car, causing minor damage.

“He was running cars off the road before he hit a police vehicle head on at First Avenue and Thompson Road,” read the release. “The officer in that vehicle was injured and transported to a local hospital for treatment. He was later released.”

After his vehicle collided with the police car, police said Kennedy fled the scene on foot and ran into a wooded area off Thompson Road. After a two-hour search involving the Alabaster, Helena and Calera police departments and the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, officers located and arrested Kennedy off First Avenue near the Fox Valley Apartments before the suspect was transported to Shelby Baptist Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries.

“This could have turned out a lot worse than it did,” Rigney said. “He put a lot of lives in danger over an outstanding warrant and a traffic violation. We are all just very thankful that no one was seriously injured.”

As of June 26, Kennedy was being held in the Shelby County Jail on bonds totaling $79,000.