Suspect In Bizarre Valley Police Chase Faces Possible Death Sentence

VAN NUYS, CA — Prosecutors Tuesday added a special circumstance allegation that could result in a death sentence against a man accused of fatally wounding his sister-in-law in Van Nuys and firing shots while leading police on a 90-minute chase the next day.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office filed an amended complaint against Marcos Tulio Flores, 32, of Lake Balboa, that adds the special circumstance allegation that Sulma Flores was fatally shot during the commission of a burglary on Jan. 8. She died later that week as a result of her injuries.

Prosecutors will decide later whether to seek the death penalty against Flores.

Along with the murder charge stemming from his sister-in-law's death, he is charged with two counts of assault with a firearm and one count each of making criminal threats, fleeing a pursuing peace officer's motor vehicle while driving recklessly, possession of a firearm by a felon and discharge of a firearm with gross negligence.

Flores allegedly shot his sister-in-law and threatened his estranged wife and her family with a gun at their Van Nuys home. The next day, authorities said Flores led police on a late-evening chase after officers began following his car, which matched the description of the one connected to the shooting.

The pursuit came to an end after about an hour and a half, but a stretch of the San Diego (405) Freeway was closed for hours afterward, forcing thousands of motorists to find other routes.

During the televised stop-and-go chase, the driver gestured wildly out the window and sunroof, tossed items onto the freeway and fired his gun out the driver-side window. Police returned fire and shot out the rear window of the car, but the motorist kept going.

Flores was finally taken into custody on the southbound 405 in the Sepulveda Pass by SWAT officers who used a pit maneuver to stop the car, and beanbag rounds and a police dog to subdue him. He was taken to the hospital to be treated for a dog bite, but there were no reports of injuries to civilians or officers resulting from the chase.

The southbound 405, from the Hollywood (101) Freeway interchange to Sunset Boulevard, remained closed until about 6:30 a.m. the next day.

City News Service; Photo: LAPD