Bodycam: Chase and shooting along I-5 during Amber Alert search

PORTLAND, Ore. — Oregon State Police have released dashcam and bodycam videos of a chase and shootout on Interstate 5 near Eugene. In April, police issued an Amber Alert while searching for a double murder suspect who kidnapped a 1-year-old child.

The videos and police reports became public after the Linn County District Attorney completed his investigation. District Attorney Doug Marteeny found that the officers involved, including Oregon State Police Superintendent Casey Codding, were legally justified in shooting; the suspect, Elias Huizar, 39, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after crashing his car.

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On April 23, Huizar was spotted by Oregon State Police officers driving a silver Toyota Corolla south on Interstate 5. The former police officer was suspected of murdering two women in central Washington and then kidnapping his one-year-old son.

Video from a dashboard camera shows the high-speed chase, which reached speeds of nearly 100 mph on the interstate. North of exit 209, police attempted to rear-end Huizar’s vehicle, but the suspect sped away. Police attempted to ram Huizar’s car again, but he did not stop despite the damage to the vehicle.

Seconds later, a gunfight broke out. According to police reports, Huizar stuck a gun out his open driver’s window and fired. Sergeant Orly “OJ” Johnson and Superintendent Casey Codding drew their guns and fired several shots. No one was injured in the initial shooting.

The chase continued south on I-5 until Huizar crashed his vehicle a few miles away. When police caught up with him, they found the suspect dead from a gunshot wound. Officers pulled the one-year-old from the vehicle, who was unharmed.

In addition to the videos, investigators also released 85 pages of police reports. The documents show that before the chase, police and the FBI tracked Huizar down Interstate 5 to the Portland area after he used his bank card at an ATM. A convenience store clerk also spotted him.

Police reports indicate that Huizar switched license plates with stolen ones to avoid getting caught. Local police and the FBI did not want the Amber Alert updated with the stolen license plate information because they feared Huizar might simply steal another license plate and law enforcement would not be able to track him down.