Officer-involved shooting during

Around 2:00 a.m. Sunday, LCSO helped the Knox County Sheriff’s Office pursue a white jeep driven by a person wanted on robbery charges, LCSO said. The jeep entered Loudon County on Highway 70, traveling at speeds over 100mph, according to the affidavit.

Officers attempted to take Tassell into custody after the vehicle turned onto Wilkerson Lane and stopped in front of a gated community. According to the affidavit, as an officer was giving verbal commands to the driver, the jeep began going around his cruiser. The officers wrote that he lost his footing, falling nearly under the front passenger side tire, and he then heard the vehicle’s engine rev and accelerate towards him and the last place he saw his partner. He continued that he was in fear for his and his partner’s lives and fired two shots at the vehicle.

“Thankfully, no deputies, officers, or the suspect were injured,” LCSO said.

The chase then continued along Highway 70 into Lenoir City. The driver turned onto Highway 321, striking a Lenoir City Police Department patrol vehicle, LCSO said. Deputies then performed a PIT maneuver then boxed the jeep in.

According to the affidavit, officers discovered that Tassell was coming from a bar in Knox County, and an open alcoholic beverage was found under the driver’s seat.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol helped process the crash.

“We’re grateful no one was harmed during this dangerous incident, and we commend the outstanding teamwork between our deputies, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, the Lenoir City Police Department, and the Tennessee Highway Patrol for safely bringing this situation to an end,” LCSO wrote.

Knox and Loudon County chase suspect charged with DUI, reckless endangerment, report says Paxton Tassell was driving a white Jeep Rangler, the report said, when he led officers in Knox County on a chase.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - The arrest report for a suspect in a multi-county chase is giving more insight into what happened Sunday night.

WVLT News obtained the arrest report for Paxton Tassell, which outlines what police said happened after he left the Cotton Eyed Joe in Knoxville.

Tassell was driving a white Jeep Rangler, the report said, when he led officers in Knox County on a chase. He crossed into Loudon County not long after 2 a.m., the report said, prompting Loudon County Sheriff’s Office deputies to respond as well.

“I witnessed a vehicle matching that description pass my location traveling onto Highway 70 at a speed well over one hundred miles per hour,” the report said.

An official with the Loudon County Sheriff’s Office said deputies were able to use a PIT maneuver where they box the suspect in with their cruisers, causing them to stop, to get the situation under control. The report said deputies were able to take Tassell into custody after stopping him.

Deputies suspected Tassell was under the influence, and the report said they found an open alcoholic beverage under his driver’s seat.

Paxton has been charged with driving under the influence, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, evading arrest and other traffic offenses.