Free Republic

NAZARETH — Daniel Autenrieth’s life was unraveling. Creditors had sued him over thousands of dollars in unpaid bills. His house was in foreclosure. His wife of 10 years had filed for divorce and then for a protective order, claiming years of physical and mental abuse. He’d lost custody of their three children. Related headlines The 31-year-old car salesman and youth baseball coach was angry. On Sunday night, his rage boiled over. After arguing with his estranged wife, Autenrieth kidnapped his 9-year-old son at gunpoint and led police on a 40-mile chase into the Pocono Mountains, then started a gun battle...

COOLBAUGH TWP. - The high-speed chase raced through heavy traffic and busy intersections for nearly 40 minutes Sunday night, with no signs of stopping. Trooper Joshua Miller, 34, of Pittston Twp., made a split-second decision to ram the back of Daniel Autenrieth's fleeing Honda Civic, sending the car spinning into a guard rail. There, other police cars surrounded it while Trooper Miller and Trooper Robert Lombardo ran to the driver's side door to confront the 31-year-old Northampton County man. The troopers were just inches away when the bullets began flying, though investigators are not yet sure who fired first. Trooper...