A Santa Barbara man was arrested Monday evening after allegedly driving drunk, trying to elude sheriff’s deputies and then crashing his car into a parked vehicle in Goleta.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department received calls about 5:45 p.m. Monday of a suspected drunken driver leaving the parking lot of Vons at Fairview Center in Goleta, according to public information officer Drew Sugars.
Callers provided descriptions of the vehicle. A deputy on patrol in the area observed the driver go through a stop sign at San Marcos Road and Via Los Santos and initiated a traffic stop. The driver fled, leading deputies through residential neighborhoods and onto Cathedral Oaks Road, at times reaching high rates of speed.
The suspect ended the 3.8-mile pursuit when he drove his Camaro into an unoccupied vehicle parked along Cathedral Oaks, west of Carlo Drive. Sugars said the impact pushed the vehicle about 50 feet from where it had been parked.
The pursuit lasted less than five minutes, he said.
Todd Alan Bushey, 52, of Santa Barbara, suffered minor injuries and was transported to Goleta Valley Cottage Hospital for evaluation and treatment. No other injuries were reported.
Bushey was booked into the Santa Barbara County Jail on charges on felony evading, DUI and driving on a suspended license. Bail was set at $75,000.
— Noozhawk managing editor Michelle Nelson can be reached at mnelson@noozhawk.com.
