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Nicholas Jay Barton, 21, of Beaumont was indicted by a Jefferson County Grand Jury on Jan. 10 for a third-degree felony charge of evading arrest or detention with a vehicle.
The indictment stems from Barton’s Dec. 13, 2023, arrest. A 16-yearold female was reported as a runaway just before noon and, according to the child’s parents as described in the probable cause affidavit for Barton’s arrest, she was seen leaving her residence with Barton via doorbell camera.
Nederland Police Department (NPD) Detectives Cody Perkins and John Oge conducted surveillance at Barton’s residence in Beaumont, when they observed him arrive in his pickup truck with the runaway teen, exit the vehicle, and enter his residence.
Barton and the teenager exited the home and entered the truck, after which officers pulled into Barton’s driveway in an attempt to block his vehicle’s exit with the patrol car.
According to Perkins, as officers exited the patrol car to approach Barton, the suspect drove around the unit onto Orgain Street and began driving at a high rate of speed. Oge activated his siren and pursued Barton along with several Beaumont Police units.
Barton continued to evade officers throughout Beaumont, and eventually surrendered the pursuit in the 1000 block of West Cardinal Drive.
The runaway teenager was located in the front passenger seat of the vehicle, and Perkins stated that Barton was knowingly harboring a child, 16 years old, and was criminally negligent about whether the child was under the age of 18.
Barton was booked into the Jefferson County Correctional Facility where he remained at press time with a bond set at $10,000.