BUCYRUS — Dehlen Hyden of Bucyrus will have the 10 years to rethink his decision to steal a police car and wreak havoc on two communities in the process.
Hyden, 29, appeared in Crawford County Common Pleas Court Wednesday to plead guilty to 10 felony charges. In May, the Crawford County Sherriff’s Department went to Hyden’s Bucyrus address to serve an eviction notice. Hyden was ordered to leave the premises under a domestic dispute.
Hyden had a knife and threatened to kill himself. The Bucyrus Police Department arrived on the scene, took Hyden into custody and placed him in the back of the cruiser. Hyden managed to get his arms in front of himself and wiggle his way behind the wheel of the cruiser and took off.
Hyden mocked police on the cruiser radio. Police lost Hyden after a high-speed chase through the city. Wyandot County Sherriff’s deputies located Hyden on the roof of a closed meat packaging facility. He had a gun from the cruiser that went off and Hyden cut a wire on the radio.
In a plea negation, Common Pleas Court Judge Sean Leuthold heard from Hyden’s attorney, Brad Starkey, who noted that his client volunteered himself for arrest and did not threaten anyone else in the process. He said his client had planned to use the gun to shoot off his handcuffs but thought better of the idea.
“Since his arrest he has been upset with himself,” Starkey said. “This is something that just happened. It’s not typical.”
When asked if he had anything to say, Hyden told the court that he was just threatening to hurt himself. He said he and his wife were arguing over COVID-19, being cooped up and unable to work.
“My old lady’s father was having me evicted. I was helpless and hopeless,” Hyden said.
“You made a series of horrible decisions. The one good decision you made was not to shoot those handcuffs off,” Leuthold said. “Otherwise, you’d be sitting here with a stump. We don’t tolerate this stuff. You steal a police cruiser, take a gun, and go on a high-speed chase. When you do these crazy things, you get a long prison sentence.”
Leuthold sentenced Hyden to the maximum three years on third-degree felonies including, failure to comply, two counts of theft, tampering with evidence and having weapons under disability, 18 months on each of the fourth-degree felonies which included two counts of theft and resisting arrest as well as 12 months on each of the fifth-degree felonies that include resisting arrest, unauthorized use of telecommunications property, escape and vandalism for a total of 10 years in prison.
Hyden will receive 92 days of jail time credit. He will pay restitution in an amount to be determined and received a lifetime driver’s license suspension.
“You’re lucky to be alive and you have all your limbs,” Leuthold said. “This is the kind of stuff that gets people killed.”
In another case, Joseph Lawhun, 33, of Bucyrus appeared in court to answer charges he violated the terms and conditions of his community control. Lawhun was sentenced to one year in prison in April after he pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property, a fourth-degree felony punishable with up to 18 months in prison. He was granted judicial release in May and placed on five years of community control.
According to probation officer Jeremy Clay, he was alerted in July by law enforcement that Lawhun was engaging in drug activity. Lawhun tested positive for oxycodone. A search of Lawhun’s cell phone revealed several conversations with convicted felons.
Leuthold imposed the original one-year sentence, sending Lawhun back to prison. Leuthold said he would not oppose transitional control if the prison requested it.