Man who shot at undercover police during 2019 car chase sentenced to 8 years in prison

A man will spend eight years in prison for charges related to a confrontation with police more than two years ago in which he fired at them.

The trial for Jordan G. Brown, 30, was delayed for months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prosecutors attempted to amend Brown’s charges to include attempted murder in early September. Before that, Brown pleaded guilty to lesser charges of second-degree assault, two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, attempt to elude and possession of stolen property on Sept. 21.

Brown was wanted in August 2019 for escaping community custody after a felony second-degree theft conviction in 2017. Police say they were searching for him on Spokane’s South Hill after receiving reports he was in the area.

Cpl. Shane Oien was driving an unmarked car when he found Brown’s car in an alley, according to police. That’s when police say Brown sped off and Oien followed until Brown slammed on the brakes, causing Oien to crash into him.

Brown sped off and Oien followed.

Brown eventually made a U-turn and fired at least four shots at Oien, who was not hit. Brown fled but was arrested a few hours later.

Brown told The Spokesman-Review last year he thought he was being robbed by someone he dealt with in the past, not being followed by undercover police officers. Brown said he fired the shots in self-defense and had no idea that it was police following him.

That was what he also told police the night of the incident.

“(Brown) kept repeating, ‘There were no police lights on so I didn’t know it was the police,’ ” the police report says.

A veteran, Brown said he began using drugs while deployed in Afghanistan. The addiction, along with post-traumatic stress disorder, followed him home, he said. Brown told a court psychologist that his drug use had intensified over the months before his arrest and that he used methamphetamine the night of his arrest.

Brown was sentenced last week to 96 months in prison with credit for time served.