Woman who stole Sumter County patrol car denied bond, awaits mental evaluation

The 21-year-old Cherryvale woman charged for stealing and wrecking three vehicles — including a marked county patrol vehicle — on Wednesday will remain in jail at least until a February bond hearing in general sessions court.

Mia Thornton, of Cherryvale Drive, was arrested after she allegedly led officers on a 15-minute chase from Pinewood Road to Kaydon Corp. — a multiple-mile trip — at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour.

Magistrate Court Judge Larry Blanding set a $647.50 personal recognizance bond for a first offense driving under suspension charge — filed by S.C.

Highway Patrol, which also charged Thornton with failure to stop for a blue light and siren.

Blanding denied bond for other charges filed by Sumter County Sheriff's Office, which include two counts of aggravated assault; assault and battery with intent to kill; grand larceny of more than $10,000; grand larceny of more than $2,000 but less than $10,000; malicious injury to property; two counts of possession, concealment, sale or disposal of a stolen vehicle; and resisting arrest with a deadly weapon.

The court believes Thornton to be a danger to the community, Blanding said, so bond on her more serious charges will be set by a circuit court judge.

Thornton is accused of taking her boyfriend's vehicle; stealing the vehicle of a man who gave her a ride after causing the truck to strike another vehicle; and stealing and wrecking a deputy patrol car on Kaydon Corp. property, causing nearly $80,000 in damage, according to the sheriff's office.

Thornton sat in front of two victims during a first appearance hearing at Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center on Thursday. She began to cry when her mother entered the courtroom and continued to tear up throughout the hearing.

Neither of the victim's spoke, but Thornton's mother told the judge the incident may have been caused by her daughter's struggle with mental illness.

"This is flabbergasting to me," said Thornton's mother, whose name was not provided.

She said her daughter was diagnosed with a mental illness in 2011 and again a year and a half ago after the birth of her son, though she did not say from what kind of mental illness her daughter suffers.

She said Thornton has never hurt another person during one of her "episodes" and that she is a candidate for treatment.

Blanding ordered that Thornton have a mental evaluation after scheduling her for a bond hearing in general session court at Sumter County Judicial Center on Feb. 9.

Sumter County Sheriff Anthony Dennis said he does not think the investigation will change after hearing Thornton's mother make comments about her daughter's mental health.

Thornton seemed to know what she had done while speaking with investigators, he said.

In-car video provided by the sheriff's office shows Thornton get one hand loose from her handcuffs and crawl into the front seat of the patrol vehicle through the porthole as soon as the deputy gets out of the car. Dash-cam footage shows a deputy and a trooper — both on scene when Thornton was apprehended the first time — jump out of the way as Thornton drives off.

Further footage shows multiple deputies vehicles follow Thornton as she attempts to elude them, all vehicle involved using their blue lights and sirens.

Dennis told the judge Thornton drove recklessly at speeds exceeding 100 mph without regard for citizens and the two officers who had to dive into a ditch to avoid getting hit by the patrol car she stole.

It was raining during the incident, and Thornton did not turn the windshield wipers on and drove with little visibility, crossed the solid yellow line and drove off the road multiple times, he said.

Dennis said Internal Affairs is investigating the incident involving the county patrol car to determine if any policies were violated on behalf of the deputy. He said it is too early to say if any policies were violated.