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Daniel Ballard, 36, of Coventry, was arrested on numerous charges including reckless driving, reckless endangerment, and engaging police in pursuit, among others following an attack on a woman and her children, according to Coventry Police.
The incident unfolded around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday when the Coventry Police Department received a call from an uninvolved party reporting a domestic assault taking place at a residence on High Street, police said.
The victim had fled the house with her children in a vehicle to a friend’s house at 705 Flanders Road. The female victim then called the police to report the incident. The dispatcher asked the victim to leave the house and come directly to police headquarters. At 7:48 p.m., the police department received a call from a woman who was at the Flander’s Road house watching the young children of the female victim.
The woman told police there was someone outside shooting up her house and trying to kick in the door. The woman locked herself and the children in the bathroom of the house while she was on the phone with police dispatch. Police reported that a witness said at least 20 shots were fired into the house, Coventry police said.
The woman provided police with Ballard's name and a description of his 2011 Chevy Silverado.
Coventry police, along with state police responded to the home, but Ballard had left the area, state police said.
A short time later a UConn police officer spotted Ballard on Route 32 in Willington. and notified state police of his location as he attempted to stop the vehicle. But instead of stopping, Ballard sped away.
Troopers then arrived in the area and Ballard engaged officers in a pursuit reaching speeds in excess of 90 mph, state police said.
As Ballard traveled north on Route 32, troopers were able to successfully deploy stop sticks, flattening the front wheel of the truck, state police said.
But instead of stopping, Ballard continued onto I-84, still driving at speeds of 85 to 90 mph with a flat tire until he finally pulled over in the town of Vernon, where he was taken into custody, state police said.
Troopers later found a Glock handgun that had been thrown out of the vehicle during the pursuit.
There were no injuries to any of the people inside the house on Flanders Road, but a dog inside the house was shot. The dog was later euthanized due to the injuries it received, police said.
Ballard is being held on $500,000 bond.
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