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Cross-Valley pursuit suspect speaks out, says he sped off to "resist an unlawful arrest"

Police say a 31-year-old man arrested after a crash ended a Phoenix-area car chase made anti-government statements, but his attorney says the statements stem from mental health issues, not political beliefs.

Mitchell Timothy Taebel of Long Beach, Indiana, and Los Angeles remains jailed on suspicion of endangerment and other crimes after being arrested following the crash Wednesday in Tempe.

Police say the chase began when Taebel was speeding and wouldn't pull over and ended when Taebel's SUV collided with a vehicle driven by a woman who suffered injuries not life-threatening. According to DPS officials, the chase approached speeds of 115 miles per hour (about 185 km/h) at times. Court documents indicate Taebel was on the phone with DPS, during the chase.

Officials said Taebel asserted he could ignore laws infringing on his freedom and that he had authority to kill officers trying to arrest him. He also told a negotiator, however, that he wanted the pursuit to end peacefully.

DPS officials said it had cause to go after Taebel, since its pursuit policy was revised last November, which gave officers more leeway in beginning pursuits, if people speed away when officers attempt a traffic stop.

Attorney Brian Russo says Taebel was "previously diagnosed with some mental health issues" that haven't been addressed.

"My client has well-documented mental health issues that may or may not play a role in the offense, but we will investigate and see if they played a role in what happened," said Russo.

On Thursday afternoon, Taebel agreed to an interview with members of the media at the Maricopa County Jail.

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Taebel, handcuffed, said he should be released. Taebel said he was not speeding when Arizona Department of Public Safety troopers initially tried to pull him over but later sped off to "resist an unlawful arrest.

Russo said he did not know Taebel was going to talk to media and reiterated that his client has mental issues that are well documented.

Taebel is facing a long list of charges, including aggravated assault, unlawful flight, and endangerment.