ANDERSON - Fugitive Richard Lee Hudson, on the run since Monday, was captured early Saturday after a foot chase in Chesterfield ended in an automobile crash and a suicide attempt in Anderson.
At 10:50 p.m. Friday, Hudson was spotted by Chesterfield police near a Ricker’s station at 100 Federal Drive in Chesterfield, according to Madison County Sheriff Ron Richardson.
According to police radio reports, Hudson dropped his drink cup and fled on foot as a Chesterfield police officer approached.
Over the next half hour, the Elwood K-9 unit searched the area while police requested assistance from Madison County Sheriff’s deputies.
According to Richardson, a blue and black Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck was reported stolen in the area at 11:58 p.m., and police began searching for the vehicle.
According to Anderson Police Detective Mitch Carroll, the vehicle was spotted by APD Sgt. John Branson at 24th and Pitt streets in Anderson at 12:06 a.m.
Branson pursued Hudson, who was driving the truck, as he blew through several stop signs over the next few minutes. Hudson then turned north on Indiana 9 from 32nd Street and crashed the stolen truck into a ditch at the 3100 block of Scatterfield Road.
According to Carroll, the truck’s two front tires were blown out, yet Hudson tried unsuccessfully to restart the vehicle.
Police ordered Hudson out of the truck and immediately saw a box knife in his hand.
“He raised it initially,” Branson reported in the probably cause affidavit, “and walked towards me without saying a word.”
Branson ordered Hudson to stop, and Hudson turned the blade on himself, according to the report. “He stopped near the back of the truck and put the box cutter to his throat and started slashing his own throat. He kept doing it.”
Hudson continued to cut his neck and arms as officers ordered him to stop, Carroll said.
Anderson police Officer C.J. Christian then pepper-sprayed Hudson. When the fugitive turned away, Branson pushed him in the back and “put him on the ground,” as Branson reported.
Carroll said officers handcuffed Hudson at 12:09 a.m., administering medical treatment while waiting for paramedics to arrive. Hudson was rushed to Saint John’s Medical Center, where he was treated and released into police custody. He was being held Saturday night at the Madison County jail without bond.
Police had been searching for Hudson since Monday, when he allegedly held his attorney, Thomas Hamer, at knifepoint before robbing the man, tying him up, leaving him at the Rangeline Nature Preserve and then fleeing in Hamer’s vehicle.
Hamer escaped his bonds and flagged down a passing vehicle. He was treated for minor skin abrasions.
Hudson had been in police custody in connection with his June 10 arrest for domestic battery. Hamer arranged for Hudson to be released into his custody in order to bring Hudson to a Social Security hearing in Indianapolis. The two were returning from the successful hearing when Hudson jumped into the backseat of the vehicle and placed a knife to Hamer’s throat.
On Tuesday, police had reported a possible Hudson sighting in Jay County, followed by multiple accounts of the fugitive being spotted in Ohio on Wednesday.
He has been charged with kidnapping, a Class A Felony; resisting law enforcement, a Class D Felony; and armed robbery, a Class B Felony. Bond is $100,000 for kidnapping and another $15,000 for resisting.
If convicted, Hudson could face 20 to 50 years in prison for his Class A Felony charge, according to Indiana law.
When he escaped police custody on Monday, Hudson was being jailed for domestic battery, which was a misdemeanor charge punishable by no more than one year in prison and a fine.
