Police: Man suffers heart attack after trying to carjack woman


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OGDEN — An Ogden man who police say led officers on at least three chases in the past week was hospitalized Monday in critical condition from a heart attack he suffered after allegedly beating a woman during an attempted carjacking.

The odd series of events started June 29 when Shane Patrick Gormley, 30, got into a brief chase with Utah Highway Patrol troopers and Weber County sheriff's deputies, according to UHP Lt. Chris Simmons. Gormley was allegedly fleeing on a stolen motorcycle. The chase was called off due to safety concerns.

On Saturday, the same man is believed to have gotten into a chase with Clinton police after stealing a car from Wasatch Front Kia in Riverdale, Simmons said.

The stolen motorcycle was determined to be owned by Gormley's brother-in-law who helped detectives identify him, he said.

About 8:30 a.m. Monday, a trooper went to the apartment of Gormley's girlfriend to talk to her and saw a parked car still running in the back that he was known to drive, Simmons said.

Gormley, who may have seen the trooper from the apartment, dived out a window head first and jumped into the car, Simmons said. The trooper tried to prevent Gormley from fleeing by positioning his patrol car "nose-to-nose" with Gormley's car.

The man tried to escape by backing up. The trooper responded by performing a PIT manuever on Gormley's vehicle.


He jumped into that vehicle on top of the lap of a 53-year-old woman and began to punch and beat her in an attempt to carjack her vehicle.

–UHP Lt. Chris Simmons


Gormley jumped out of the car and ran down 24th Street. He unsuccessfully attempted to carjack the driver of a truck and trailer, the lieutenant said, before jumping into a second vehicle on D Avenue.

"He jumped into that vehicle on top of the lap of a 53-year-old woman and began to punch and beat her in an attempt to carjack her vehicle," Simmons said.

At one point, Gormley allegedly tried to drive away while simultaneously pushing the woman out. Simmons said Gormley put the car in gear and was about to try and run over the trooper when the woman was able to put her car back into park.

The pursuing trooper reached inside the driver's side door and deployed a Taser on Gormley. Backup troopers helped the woman get out of her car as Gormley continued to struggle with troopers on the driver's side after they broke the driver's side window to reach him, Simmons said. A Taser was deployed three more times before police were able to take him into custody.

Gormley had managed to wedge his foot under the brake pedal so officers couldn't pull him out of the car, he said.

After he was handcuffed, shackled and taken out of the car, Simmons said Gormley went into cardiac arrest.

Troopers took off the restraints and administered first aid before Gormley was taken to McKay-Dee Hospital Center where he was placed in a medically induced coma. Tests showed he was under the influence of methamphetamine and opiates at the time, according to the lieutenant.

Doctors were able to revive Gormley. An MRI revealed no brain damage, he said. However, doctors were going to keep him in a medically induced coma overnight as he came off his alleged drug high.

Gormley was convicted in May of felony shoplifting and sentenced to one year in jail. He was allowed to participate in a work release program, however, which required him to report back to his holding facility at night. Police say Gormley had recently absconded from his work release program.

He was convicted of attempted retail theft in 2013 and aggravated robbery in 2006, according to state court records. For the 2006 conviction he was sentenced to five years to life at the Utah State Prison.

Contributing: Sandra Yi

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