A North Ridgeville man who led authorities on a high-speed chase through seven counties in February pleaded guilty to a felony charge of failure to comply in Delaware County Common Pleas Court on Thursday.
George Tiller, 33, appeared in Delaware County Common Pleas Court Thursday afternoon and entered a guilty plea to one charge of failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer, a third-degree felony, and one charge of operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol, a first-degree misdemeanor.
As part of plea negotiations with prosecutors, an additional misdemeanor charge of operating a vehicle under the influence was dismissed.
Tiller was originally scheduled to stand trial on June 9 but he agreed to change his plea on Wednesday.
Visiting Judge Roger B. Wilson ordered a pre-sentence investigation and scheduled sentencing for July 8 at 2 p.m.
Tiller was out of jail on bail Friday.
Assistant Delaware County Prosecutor Mark Sleeper said at Tiller’s April 1 arraignment that on Jan. 31 at about 1 a.m., police in Cuyahoga County attempted to pull Tiller over for speeding as he drove a black 2014 Ford F-150 at speeds exceeding 100 mph.
The chase continued through Medina, Wayne, Ashland, Richland and Morrow counties until spike strips deployed by troopers eventually brought the truck to a halt on Interstate 71 near the Lewis Center Road bridge in Delaware County.
Tiller left the truck and continued on foot briefly before being apprehended by police at about 2:15 a.m., according to Sleeper.
State troopers said Tiller sustained minor injuries in the crash and reportedly was transported to Grady Memorial Hospital to be treated before he was taken to the Delaware County Jail.
Sleeper said troopers smelled alcohol on Tiller at the time of his arrest but Tiller refused to take a Breathalyzer test.
Tiller’s attorney, Christine Russo, said at the arraignment that since his January arrest, Tiller has been involved in Alcoholics Anonymous.
No one was injured in the chase, deputies from the Delaware County Sheriff’s Office reported. The truck was severely damaged in the crash, troopers said. At the time of the crash, the front tires were both shredded and the truck was being driven on rims.
