Colorado man sentenced to five years for high-speed chase after evading officers

Zakary Dean Hirschfield will spend five years in prison after pleading guilty to felony eluding of a peace officer in Douglas County.

The 24-year-old Centennial resident faced charges stemming from a high-speed chase in January that District Attorney George Brauchler described as a preventable disaster.

Brauchler argued that other agencies had prior chances to keep Hirschfield incarcerated before he led deputies through traffic at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour.

The incident began in Castle Pines when a sheriff’s deputy pulled Hirschfield over for speeding.

During the stop, Hirschfield accelerated toward the officer, who jumped clear to avoid a collision.

Video from the scene shows the deputy standing beside the vehicle before it suddenly departs, with the officer later reporting that the driver attempted to hit him.

Hirschfield then drove through Highlands Ranch and Littleton, crossing medians and driving against traffic until he crashed into another vehicle.

His passenger told investigators she begged him to stop before he abandoned her and the wrecked car to flee on foot.

Dozens of deputies, drones, and a K9 unit tracked Hirschfield through a neighborhood in Littleton.

Thermal imaging captured him moving through brush and trees until officers located him under a porch approximately one hour after the initial stop.

Body camera footage shows deputies approaching the raised wooden structure with flashlights and restraining the shirtless man on the ground.

Searchers found cocaine and drug paraphernalia inside his vehicle during the subsequent investigation. Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly stated that the defendant learned the hard way that putting the public at risk would not be tolerated. Deputy District Attorney Zach Idris noted that Hirschfield will have time to reflect on his reckless actions while in the Department of Corrections. Prosecutors highlighted a history of judicial decisions that contributed to the chase. In November 2024, an Arapahoe County judge granted Hirschfield probation and community service after he pleaded to attempted distribution of fentanyl. His probation was revoked less than three months later, but he was placed back on probation in June 2025. On August 19, 2025, a motion to revoke that probation was filed while Hirschfield was released without cash bail in Jefferson County on a new felony robbery charge. Five months after that release, he led the January pursuit that resulted in his current sentence. Brauchler concluded that Hirschfield should have been locked up before he hit the gas. The district attorney suggested that the defendant commit his crimes in jurisdictions that are more forgiving or simply refrain from committing them at all. Hirschfield’s five-year term will be served in the state Department of Corrections.