Prison term for woman who stole police car

A woman who stole a Philadelphia police car in March after she and her boyfriend led police on a wild chase in a stolen Camden police car has been sentenced to three to eight years in prison.

Shayna Sykes, 24, of Macungie, Pa., was sentenced by Common Pleas Court Judge Charles Ehrlich, who also ordered seven years' probation. Sykes pleaded guilty to theft, aggravated assault, and related charges.

On March 5, Sykes and boyfriend Blake Bills, 24, stole an idling Camden police car while an officer made a traffic stop, police said. The two were then chased by police over the Ben Franklin Bridge and into North Philadelphia before crashing the car into a home.

Bills was arrested. Sykes, however, escaped and stole a Philadelphia police car. She was apprehended after that vehicle caught fire during another police chase.

Two people were struck in the chases. Sykes and Bills had been high on cocaine and heroin for three days when the crime spree occurred. "This could have been a monumental tragedy in the Philadelphia community. . . . None of it ever had to happen," Ehrlich told Sykes before issuing the sentence.

"Drugs and alcohol are not an excuse," he said.

Defense attorney Geoffrey Kilroy asked the judge to limit Sykes' sentence to 11/2 to two years, saying she "has been nothing but remorseful. She always said these were decisions she made."

Kilroy said Sykes has had three prior convictions for driving under the influence.

He noted that Sykes has a 1-year-old daughter, who was in the courtroom.

"This young woman can be rehabilitated," Kilroy said, adding that Sykes wanted to raise her daughter.

Assistant District Attorney Guy D'Andrea urged the judge to sentence her to five to 10 years, noting that Sykes had received probation on each DUI conviction.

He said Sykes used her daughter as an excuse for her crimes.

A Camden police officer and an elderly Philadelphia woman were injured in the incident, D'Andrea said.

"She stopped when the car would no longer run," D'Andrea said. "A short sentence will do nothing more than say she could do anything she wants."

After the sentencing, D'Andrea said, "This could have ended in a fatality. Thank goodness it did not."

He said Sykes would now go to Lehigh County, where she is accused of violating probation on her DUI convictions.

When Lehigh County authorities are finished with her, she will face charges of theft, conspiracy, and joyriding in Camden County, D'Andrea said.

Bills is scheduled for a Common Pleas Court hearing Thursday.

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