Motorist accused of driving into officers’ vehicles during chase

Motorist accused of driving into officers’ vehicles during chase

On April 10, 2025, Cook County Sheriff’s Office deputies attempted to stop a stolen out-of-state vehicle, leading to a multi-county pursuit, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Two defendants, Brockton H. Hawk, 24, of Pesotum, IL, and Stephanie Marie Delahr, 37, of Allerton, IL, have been arrested and face multiple charges in connection with the case.

A Sheriff’s Office incident report gave the following account:

At about 7:54 a.m. April 10, an officer was traveling west on Kinard Bridge Road in Lenox when he saw a Dodge Dually almost strike a Jeep Wrangler at the intersection of Kinard Bridge Road and the I-75 South off-ramp. As the officer started to pass the Dodge, it pulled farther into the intersection, failing to yield right of way. The officer activated his blue lights to initiate a traffic stop. The truck stopped in the roadway and reversed a short distance. The officer got on his PA system and told the driver to pull into the Chevron parking lot.

As the Dodge pulled into the parking lot, the officer let Cook 911 know about the traffic stop and called in the Illinois license plate displayed on the rear of the truck. The tag returned expired. The officer approached the driver’s side of the truck and asked the driver why he had ran the stop sign. The driver pointed to the dash and said his ABS system was malfunctioning. The officer asked the driver for his driver’s license. The driver told him that he didn’t know where it was, somewhere in the truck. The officer returned to his patrol car to get a note pad and clip board. When he returned, he asked the driver to neatly write his name and date of birth on the card. The driver wrote a false name and date of birth on the paper. The officer then asked the driver about the odor of marijuana in the vehicle. The driver stated he didn’t smoke marijuana. The officer requested a back-up unit to his location and asked the driver to step out of the vehicle. The driver asked the officer, “Do I really need to step out?” When the officer stated, “Yes,” the driver put the truck in gear and drove off.

The driver proceeded around the back of the Chevron Station and headed north on North Union Road. The officer advised Cook 911 that the driver had taken off and proceeded to follow the vehicle with his blue lights and siren activated. As the vehicle proceeded north, both the passenger and driver were seen tossing bags of what appeared to be marijuana and other substances out the windows. At one point, a gun was tossed out of the passenger side window. The vehicle drove on the wrong side of the road and then turned onto Lott Bridge Road. The reporting officer asked Cook 911 to contact the Georgia State Patrol and the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office and let them know that the Cook Sheriff’s Office was in a vehicle pursuit headed to Colquitt County.

As the driver continued west, he was observed tossing other items out of the window. The driver turned onto Edward Warren Road, and failed to stop at the stop sign located at the intersection of Elton Clark Road. The vehicle then proceeded to J.W. Powers Road, then to C.S. Powers Road, and back to Elton Clark Road, where he turned west. The truck traveled west until it got to the intersection of Charley Hamm Road. The truck turned and went down Charley Hamm Road until it reached the intersection with Livingston Bridge Road. Once at the intersection, the truck turned east. At this point, another Cook County deputy sheriff was approaching from the west. The reporting officer had the other officer turn around and attempt to get in front of the chase, so he could deploy spike strips. Once the driver of the Dodge saw what was happening, he turned into a driveway located next to 2108 Livingston Bridge Road. The truck continued south down the driveway and into a corn field, where it ran over several rows of freshly sprouted corn. The vehicle then turned back west and entered another field. Once in the field, the Dodge started getting stuck. He then turned and ran into the thick woods. At this point, the other Cook County deputy sheriff and a Colquitt County deputy sheriff had arrived on the scene. The reporting officer explained that the truck had entered into the woods, and he wasn’t able to follow. At this point, the reporting officer, a Colquitt County deputy sheriff, and a State Trooper went on foot to try and find the truck. They were able to locate the trailer that the truck had been towing, and at one point were able to get a visual on the truck. However, the truck was able to evade them once again.

About 45 minutes later, the Georgia State Patrol helicopter arrived on the scene. The helicopter was able to locate the truck stuck in the woods. Colquitt County deputies approached the truck and discovered that the driver had attempted to set the truck on fire. A deputy was able to extinguish the fire with an extinguisher. As the reporting officer was getting ready to deploy K-9 Fievel in an attempt to track the suspects, a Berlin police officer and other State Troopers out of the Thomasville Post were able to find the passenger, identified as Stephanie Delahr. She was taken into custody and placed in the back seat of the Berlin Police Department’s vehicle. After Delahr was taken into custody, she was asked what the driver’s real name was. She told the officers a name that was later found out to be untrue. Warrants state that Hawk is her boyfriend.

After about an hour of search, officers decided to call off the search in hopes of the driver being seen walking on the road. The Dodge truck was turned over to Cook County Towing and taken to their impound yard. The truck was found to have the ignition punch. A search of the LEADS data base returned the truck as stolen. This was confirmed by the Urbana, IL, Police Department. The truck had been taken from Cunningham Motors in Illinois on April 8, 2025.

At about 2 p.m., the reporting officer was contacted by a State Trooper and told that the driver had been seen walking on Highway 319 and asking for a ride. Deputies headed toward the area, along with undercover units from the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies staged at the intersection of Highway 319 and Livingston Bridge Road.

At about 2:10 p.m., Colquitt County 911 received a call in reference to a stolen Ford F-350 that was taken from the wedding venue on Livingston Bridge Road (the old Jernigan’s restaurant). Colquitt County officers were able to get the tag info and used the county’s Flock camera system to find the vehicle had traveled north on Highway 319.

The reporting officer and another deputy went to the I-75 overpass in Lenox. At 3:42 p.m., the vehicle was spotted traveling south on I-75. The deputies, along with undercover vehicles from the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office, attempted to stop the stolen truck. At the I-75 47 Mile Marker, as the truck traveled in the middle lane, a unmarked pickup truck belonging to the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office pulled up near the stolen truck in the first lane. The truck made an abrupt turn into the first lane, striking the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office truck in an attempt to run them off the road. The offender then made another sharp lane change from the first lane to the third lane in an attempt to intentionally hit another Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office vehicle and run them off the road. The truck continued south at 95 mph to 100 mph.

The traffic was thick, so the truck entered the emergency lane several times and did come very close to striking other vehicles. The reporting officer had Cook 911 contact the State Patrol and Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, and request assistance in the pursuit. Once the offender crossed into Lowndes County, the reporting officer contacted Lowndes County 911 on his cell phone to keep them up to date, and the pursuit continued south. At the 30 Mile Marker, the Hahira Police Department became the primary officer in the pursuit. The offender continued south and exited I-75 at Mile Marker 29. The truck went up the off ramp and then tried to intentionally strike several Motor Carrier Compliance Officers head-on. The driver turned east on Highway 122, and proceeded through Hahira with the Georgia State Patrol, Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, and Hahira Police Department all joining the pursuit. At the intersection of Highway 122 and Highway 41, the truck turned north, heading back towards Cook County.

The reporting officer had a deputy take I-75 north in an attempt to set up spike strips at the intersection of Highway 41 and Fellowship Road. As the pursuit continued north on Highway 41, the Georgia State Patrol attempted to use a PIT maneuver. As the Trooper moved in to attempt the PIT, the truck turned into the Trooper and caused severe damage to the Trooper’s car. The truck then turned and drove through a family’s fence. The truck continued through their yard with no regard for any innocent bystander’s safety. The truck attempted to run through a wooded area; however, it struck an oak tree that stopped the truck. As officers were approaching the vehicle, the driver attempted to put the truck in reverse and maneuver out of the woods. Deputies from Colquitt County used less lethal rounds to shatter the driver’s side window and extracted the driver from the vehicle.

As the driver was removed from the truck, he continued to fight deputies from Lowndes and Colquitt Counties. Finally, the driver was placed in handcuffs and placed in the back of a Georgia State Patrol car. Lowndes County EMS checked the driver’s injuries. The driver was identified as Brockton “Brock” H. Hawk of Pesotum, IL. Hawk was transported to South Georgia Medical Center for evaluation, before being transported to the Lowndes County Jail.

Hawk was held in the Lowndes County Jail since the incident, until he was transferred to the Cook County Jail on May 19. He faces local (Cook County) charges including aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer (three counts), illegal driving on divided highways (two counts), driving on the wrong side of the road, driving while license suspended, failure to stop for a stop sign, fleeing from or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer – felony, giving false information to an officer, reckless driving (two counts), speeding in a 70-mph zone (two counts), tampering with evidence – felony, theft by bringing stolen property into state – felony, theft by receiving stolen property – felony, and obstruction of an officer (misdemeanor).

On May 21, Cook County Chief Magistrate Judge Stephen Chammoun denied bond (pretrial release from jail) for Hawk. According to the judge’s order, the accused poses a “flight risk,” a significant threat or danger to people and property in the community, and a significant risk of committing a felony pending trial. Hawk was also on probation for a felony charge, aggravated fleeing from police, in the state of Illinois. Hawk may still seek bond in a hearing before a Superior Court judge. Court records state that Hawk has completed school through the 10th grade, has resided one-and-a-half months in Valdosta, and is unemployed. The accused has requested a court-appointed defense attorney.

His codefendant, Stephanie Marie Delahr, has been charged with theft by bringing stolen property into state – felony, tampering with evidence – felony, obstruction of a law enforcement officer, and possession of marijuana. On April 11, Cook County Magistrate Judge Ronnie Fender set bond at $22,000 (property). Court records state that the accused is not employed and has requested a court-appointed defense attorney.

The Alapaha Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case, which is pending in Cook County Superior Court.