By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

A Helena man was sentenced to 18 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to attempting to run over two Helena police officers during a 2012 vehicle chase.

Richard Shane Philpott pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree attempted assault on Oct. 17, according to Shelby County court documents.

Through a plea agreement, Philpott’s original sentence of 15 years in prison was shortened to 18 months in prison followed by three years of supervised probation. Philpott received jail credit for the 529 days he has already served in the Shelby County Jail since his arrest.

Police arrested Philpot on July 2, 2012, after a more-than-45-minute car chase through several jurisdictions.

The pursuit began shortly before 1:30 p.m. when Bessemer officers attempted to stop Philpot’s vehicle on narcotics charges. Officers called off the case and notified the Helena Police Department when the pursuit reached speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour, according to Helena police.

A short time later, Helena officers spotted Philpot’s vehicle on Shelby County 93 and attempted to stop the suspect.

Helena police said the pursuit then led into a subdivision off Shelby County 93, where Helena Police Department Sgt. Chris Rollan said it “appeared the suspect was going to stop.” When another officer exited his patrol car, Rollan said Philpot attempted to strike the officer before fleeing the scene.

The pursuit then continued into Bibb County and onto Interstate 20 before ending in McCalla when police said Philpot jumped from his moving vehicle. Philpot’s unmanned SUV then struck an unoccupied house, according to Rollan.

Helena officers then brought the suspect into custody and transported him to the Helena City Jail to await transportation to the Shelby County Jail.