Plant Thief Arrested After Second Chase

By Debbie Williams Reporter

Summerdale police have put the brakes on a man that led them on a high speed chase throught parts of Baldwin County last week with a truck load of palm trees. Plant Thief Arrested After Second Chase

Published: Wed, June 11, 2008 - 2:07 pm

Debbie Williams

Summerdale police have put the brakes on a man that led them on a high speed chase through parts of Baldwin County last week with a truck load of palm trees.
The last time Summerdale police officer T.J. Palkovic saw about a dozen palm trees, they were in the back of a black Toyota pickup, reaching speeds of 130 miles per hour and disappearing into the night.
Police say it was Patrick Donovan in the drivers seat. "Mr. Donovan's truck was stashed behind some trees at a residence along with some plant material that had been taken from the Magnolia Landscaping theft," says Palkovic.
He was arrested after a similar situation in Mobile County, driving a truck that once again, was full of plants. "When they attempted to stop the vehicle and talk to the driver the driver led them on a high speed chase which ended with the vehicle being spiked twice," says Palkovic.
Donovan ditched the truck and ran but he left his wallet and cell phone in the vehicle along with his passenger who told police everything they needed to know to find hundreds of dollars worth of palm trees Donovan had allegedly stolen.
"It's sad, but it doesn't really shock me," For the owner of Magnolia Landscape Stan Brooks, the arrest is a relief. He hopes it never happens again. "We are in the process of tightening the perimeters and better security. It's hard to guard the world we always know it could happen we're going to tighten up the ship."
As for Donovan, his driving days maybe over for a while. He faces charges of assault with a deadly weapon for trying to run over a Summerdale police officer, reckless endangerment, attempting to elude police and theft of property charges.

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The wife Says:

Wed, Jun 11, 2008 at 8:13 pm

Perhaps he was taking them back to “Donovan’s Reef”.

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BamaBob Says:

Wed, Jun 11, 2008 at 5:52 pm

What is the rest of the story?
_ Unless this guy has some type of serious palm tree fetish, he must have known of a ready market for these things. Who was he selling these hot horticultural specimens to? Just who and where is the landscaping fence?

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The wife Says:

Wed, Jun 11, 2008 at 5:08 pm

After his trial in Summerdale, they can transfer him to Mobile for a trial. If he is found guilty, he can be put on a chain gang and use his Palm Trees to help landscape.

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