Escaped inmate faces new charges

By Staff
Staff Reports FCT
A man who went on the lam from the Franklin County Jail and led Tennessee police on a wild chase now faces charges in connection to the death of his partner in the escape.
Christopher John Clark, 29, was arrested Sept. 20 in Memphis, Tenn. after leading police on a high-speed chase and allegedly carjacking four vehicles. News reports in Memphis said Clark's mother and girlfriend live in the city.
Clark faces murder charges in connection to the death of Ronald Vernon, 54, of Tuscumbia.
Clark and Vernon were inmates at the Franklin County Jail. Both were accused of walking away from work release Sept. 3.
Vernon's body was found near Phil Campbell four days after the escape.
According to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, officers spotted Clark in a stolen white Cadillac at a gas station on Sept. 20. Clark fled the scene.
According to the newspaper's report, Clark had his elderly mother, who is on oxygen, in the car with him. He left her in the Cadillac and then allegedly stole another car. Police followed Clark in to a house in Memphis, where he allegedly robbed and pistol-whipped the home's resident.
Clark fled the scene and is accused of taking another car at gunpoint later in the chase. With the car's passenger inside, Clark fled again, but reports said he crashed into a police car and a van and officers made the arrest.
Clark faces numerous charges related to the incidents, including second-degree escape, carjacking and kidnapping, transporting a stolen car across state lines and possession of a firearm during a felony.
Authorities have yet to receive forensic information on the exact cause of Vernon's death.