Bond denied for second suspect in deadly police chase

CHESAPEAKE

A judge denied bond Monday for a man charged in the kidnapping, police chase and shootout earlier this month that left a police officer wounded and two men dead.

Dedrion Short, 31, will wait in Chesapeake City Jail while he faces six felony charges, including first-degree murder, in the June 1 rampage that ended near the Interstate 64 on-ramp at George Washington Highway.

General District Court Judge Robert Carter cited Short's criminal record and refused his release at a brief hearing Monday

afternoon. Relatives of Tione Vincent - the man police say was abducted at gunpoint before the police chase began - cheered Carter's order. One woman said, "Thank you, Jesus!"

Short's mother, Bertoma Deloatch, told Carter that her son was dedicated to his family and had a job lined up when released. Short was a talented basketball player in high school, and still has many family members in the area, she said.

Defense attorney Kurt Gilchrist argued that Short was an unwilling participant in the violent drama. Short was abducted into a van by Christopher White, he said.

"At best, he's a driver of the vehicle," Gilchrist said.

Prosecutors say White killed Vincent with a rifle in the van while Short drove and Willie Simmons, 20, rode in the passenger's seat. White was later killed in a shootout with police. Chesapeake Officer Sean Fleming was injured in the exchange.

Short and Simmons fled during the shootout, and both were soon captured. A police dog discovered Short hidden in a nearby yard.

Prosecutor D.J. Hansen said that after Short was captured, he asked officers about his friends in the van. Two handguns were found in the vehicle, under the driver's and front passenger's seats, he said.

Hansen argued that Short's criminal history should keep him in jail. Short was on three years' probation for a conviction of possession of cocaine, according to Norfolk court records.

A Norfolk judge issued a warrant for his arrest in January for violating terms of his probation. In February, a Norfolk juvenile court judge ordered Short's arrest for failing to pay more than $15,000 in back child support.

A Circuit Court judge last week denied bond for Simmons, of Chesapeake.

Short and Simmons are scheduled to appear in Chesapeake Circuit Court on July 29.

Louis Hansen, (757) 222-5221, louis.hansen@pilotonline.com