A North Carolina woman convicted of trying to kill a Virginia state trooper in a Henrico County cul-de-sac last year was sentenced to serve 46 years in prison on Tuesday.
Karisa S. Daniels, 23, of Durham, received that punishment in Henrico Circuit Court for six felony charges connected to a Sept. 19 incident that began when she fled trooper C.A. Putnam after he stopped her for speeding on the Chippenham Parkway in Chesterfield.
Putnam used his cruiser to box in Daniels' Toyota Corolla on Lakeway Court at the end of a late-night car chase that the trooper said reached speeds of 110 miles per hour.
After shooting Putnam, Daniels fled to a home on nearby September Drive and broke into a residence while she was still armed. A married couple at the home told police that Daniels knocked on the door. The husband said in a statement he opened the door, thinking it was the the police, but Daniels pushed her way in and pointed a gun at him.
Eventually, Daniels fled and was arrested in the woods behind the home. Her attorney, G. Russell Stone, said at a February court hearing that his client did not recall pointing the weapon at anyone during the burglary.
In addition to pleading guilty to the charge of trying to kill the trooper back in February, Daniels also pleaded guilty to charges of using a firearm during the shooting, possessing a firearm while being a felon and eluding police. She also pleaded guilty to breaking and entering into the September Drive home and to using a firearm during that burglary.
Putnam said in a statement that he was knocked to his knees by the force of the gunshot, which went through his right forearm before deflecting off his bulletproof vest.