Two shot following high-speed chase

LYNN – A defense attorney accused Saugus Police officers of brutality and “covering their ass” after officers shot and injured two people who police said tried to ram into them following a high-speed police chase early Monday morning.”This is a case of severe police brutality,” Attorney Alicia Andrews said Monday afternoon in Lynn District Court. She said the defendant was unarmed and driving erratically yet suffered three gunshot wounds. His passenger suffered a single gunshot wound after police tried to stop the defendant’s car. “It is the most horrible set of facts I’ve ever seen of police brutality. They get him out of the car and what do they do? They kick him!”But Lynn District Court Judge Mary McCabe questioned the defendant’s ability to follow the law; noting he allegedly fled police and destroyed property five days after he was arraigned on unrelated charges in Woburn and prosecutors tried to revoke the defendant’s bail on yet another open case.”The victor writes the history,” Andrews replied. “All we have is the police reports.” She then suggested the Saugus Police Department “is doing a severe case of covering their ass.”Jonathan L. Colleran, 31, of 135 Elm St., Stoneham, was arrested and charged with reckless operation of a motor vehicle; a marked-lanes violation; failure to stop/yield; speeding; a number-plate violation to conceal identity; operating an uninsured motor vehicle; operating an unregistered motor vehicle; a miscellaneous motor vehicle equipment violation; failure to stop for police; assault with a dangerous weapon; and resisting arrest.A not guilty plea was entered on Colleran’s behalf at his arraignment Monday afternoon.Assistant District Attorney Lisa Core told the court Stoneham Police pursued Colleran’s vehicle after receiving a report of an alleged erratic driver early Monday morning. Core said the driver repeatedly escaped officers’ attempts to stop him, saying Colleran reportedly drove an estimated 50 to 60 miles per hour in a 30-mile-per-hour zone, ran over landscaping borders and lawns, demolished a stone wall and hit a parked car while fleeing police.Stoneham Police ended the pursuit when the defendant allegedly reached a speed of more than 100 miles per hour on Route 128.Core said Saugus Police saw the car on Route 1 South at approximately 2 a.m. Officers reported the car was driving on three tires and a tireless rim, which was shooting off sparks. They resumed the chase.Cruisers tried to box in the defendant’s car during the chase, but the car swerved at an officer’s cruiser, according to Core. She said the chase stopped at a dead-end area of Elmwood Avenue and Colleran drove at the cruisers, prompting an officer “in fear for his life and the safety to fellow officers” to fire at the vehicle.She requested Colleran be held on $100,000 cash bail and that his bail be revoked in four open cases out of Woburn Court.Core said Colleran’s record “shows he has a history of violence” and includes jail time for drug charges.Describing the new charges, she said Colleran was “a clear danger” to the community and “a menace on the roadways.””His actions were violent and aggressive, and threatened the lives of not only himself and his passenger but also the lives of officers who responded and other motorists,” Core said.She said officers were applying for a warrant to search the car after officers reported drug evidence and more charges in the case may be forthcoming.But Andrews questioned whether allegedly failing to stop for police and erratic driving justified a defendant being shot at least three times and his passenger being shot once.”It is a severe case of police overreaction,” she said in court. “He had no knife and no gun, there was no indication he shot at Saugus Police … officers did not perform a gunshot residue test (on the defendant), they didn’t need to.”She said Colleran was “very, very lucky he was not killed by police.”She requested her client be released on personal recognizance and h