Teen steals truck, rams deputy

An 18-year-old Pennsylvania man already wanted on various charges faces multiple new ones — including attempted capital murder – after authorities say he repeatedly rammed a Madison County deputy’s cruiser Monday while fleeing in a stolen truck.

After stealing the beige 2006 Ford pickup from Madison’s 7-Eleven convenience store around 5:30 p.m., the man – Cody Thomas Schaff of the Carlisle, Pa.-area – sped south on U.S. 29, according to Madison County Sheriff Erik Weaver.

Schaff was next seen by Deputy Betty Long at the Sheetz convenience store on U.S. 29 and Route 230 filling up on diesel fuel using a stolen credit card, the sheriff said. Shortly after, the man took off, continuing south on U.S. 29 at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour, according to MCSO dispatch conversations.

As he approached the Rochelle-area across the road from Blue Ridge Emporium, Schaff encountered MCSO Deputy Reade Marchette and “deliberately” struck Marchette’s police cruiser at least twice, according to the sheriff. The 18 year old was traveling at about 65-70 miles per hour when he hit the MCSO deputy, which forced both drivers to lose control of their vehicles, Weaver said.

The stolen pickup flipped numerous times, hitting a guardrail and the Pennsylvania man was ejected from the vehicle, Weaver said. The pickup – whose passenger side roof was crushed flat – came to a rest on its side in a grassy ditch along the western side of the road.

Marchette was uninjured, experiencing only minor aches and pains, the sheriff said. The deputy’s patrol unit – which was splattered with dirt and appeared to be dented and scraped on its driver’s side – is likely totaled, according to Weaver.

Schaff was airlifted to the University of Virginia Medical Center, where he spent the night Monday and was treated for minor injuries, Weaver told The Eagle. He had been expected to be released from the hospital and transported to Central Virginia Regional Jail in Orange Tuesday, Weaver said.

At the time of the accident, Schaff was wanted out of Pennsylvania on other charges, according to the sheriff, who said he had been told Pennsylvania law enforcement officials had been on a “manhunt” searching for the man.

Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Steven Junkin told Cumberland County, Pa.’s newspaper The Sentinel that the search for Schaff began Sunday in Shippensburg, Pa. after the man apparently cut a probation department monitoring device from his ankle, triggering an alert to authorities, the newspaper’s Web site states. Schaff was awaiting a Cumberland County, Pa. court date on theft charges linked to an April arrest for breaking into vehicles, according to The Sentinel.

The 18 year old arrived at Madison’s 7-Eleven in a vehicle he had apparently stolen in Pennsylvania, Weaver said. Schaff then stole a local resident’s Ford pickup from the convenience store, leaving the other vehicle behind, according to the sheriff.

At press time, Schaff had been charged with attempted capital murder of a deputy – a class two felony charge that carries a possible 20-year- to life-sentence – Weaver said.

Additional charges – including grand larceny, credit card theft and fugitive from justice – were also pending, according to the sheriff.