This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Crime & Safety

South Whitehall Man Charged in High-Speed Police Chase

Friend of cop-killer George Hitcho leads police on high-speed chase from Freemansburg to South Whitehall, according to court records. An arrest does not indicate a conviction.

 

About a year after was killed in Freemansburg, Todd Schaedel, a friend of the killer who was charged with obstructing police the night of the shooting, was back on the block where it happened.

And in a chilling similarity to Lasso’s shooting death on Aug. 11, 2011, Wednesday night’s events began with a call about a disturbance. Schaedel told police he was visiting a friend. They later discovered he was in some kind of vehicle crash.

But the incident didn’t end there. Schaedel, 45, who police say was drunk, allegedly led them on a high-speed chase. Driving a pickup with a flat tire, he went through Freemansburg, eventually onto Interstate 78 and ended up at 4228 Briarcliff Road, South Whitehall, where he lives. He was captured after a brief foot chase, police say.

A criminal complaint describes something out of a high action movie:

  • Schaedel was eventually chased by 17 police officers. Because the right front tire was flat, sparks flew off the rim, and burned pieces of rubber were launched in the air and hit pursuing police cruisers.
  • He went through numerous stop signs, weaved through traffic and almost hit several vehicles.
  • His route to South Whitehall included New and Main streets in Freemansburg, Shimersville Road and Route 412 in Bethlehem and I-78 west to the Allentown area.

Schaedel, formerly of Freemansburg, had been charged with obstructing police in the aftermath of Lasso’s shooting death. In June, he pleaded guilty to lesser charges and was fined $300, according to published reports.

In May, Lasso’s killer, George Hitcho Jr., now 47, . Lasso, 31, was responding to Hitcho’s home at 440 New St. for a report of a disturbance between neighbors. A week after being convicted,

The complaint against Schaedel – filed by Freemansburg Patrolman Robert Wieder – also says:

Find out what's happening in South Whitehallwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

  • Wieder and another officer responded to 446 New St. around 11 p.m.  Wednesday for a report of an “unwanted guest.” They saw Schaedel in the yard of the residence walking toward a rear alley.
  • Schaedel was “swaying heavily,” had bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and had a strong odor of alcohol on his breath. The complaint does not list Schaedel’s blood-alcohol level.
  • Asked what he was doing there, Schaedel said he came to visit a friend, but “they” wouldn’t let him in. He said his pickup had a flat tire and he needed to park the vehicle so he could fix it in the morning.
  • In addition to the flat tire, police saw damage to the truck – the front right corner had a paint transfer. Asked where the damage came from, Schaedel wouldn’t answer.
  • Police placed Schaedel in “investigative detention.” The other officer, meanwhile, found a chain-link fence that had been run over, tire tracks leading up to a cream-colored garage, and a damaged garage wall.
  • The officer yelled he had found the damage. When Wieder turned in his colleague’s direction, Schaedel jumped into his truck and fled, despite numerous warnings to stop. The chase began and eventually was joined by officers from neighboring departments.

Schaedel was charged with the following:

Seventeen counts of recklessly endangering another person, and one count each of fleeing or attempting to elude officers, escape, DUI – general impairment with blood-alcohol levels of at least .08 percent (the legal limit) and less than .10 percent, DUI with blood-alcohol levels of at least .10 percent but less than .16 percent, reckless driving, careless driving, public drunkenness, accidents involving damage to unattended vehicle, and duty to give information and render aid.

He was arraigned at 5:35 a.m. Thursday by on-duty District Judge Jackie Taschner of Palmer Township and committed to Northampton County Prison after failing to post $75,000 bail.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.

More from South Whitehall