Yuba City man pleads no contest in game warden incident

Just a few weeks before he was set to stand trial, Shawn Larry Markure pleaded no contest to three felony charges stemming from his 2011 run-in with state game wardens after a high-speed chase near Elk Creek in Glenn County.

Markure, 37, of Yuba City, will be sentenced Jan. 18 for reckless driving while fleeing a peace officer, deterring a peace officer and child endangerment.

He pleaded no contest to the charges in Glenn County Superior Court on Nov. 8 in exchange for having nearly 60 other felony charges dismissed, including assaulting a peace officer with a deadly weapon and special allegations that could have sent him to prison for decades.

Game wardens reportedly tried to stop Markure just west of Elk Creek around 2 a.m. on July 22, 2011, for a vehicle code violation, but he tried to escape at speeds in excess of 100 mph, officials said. The vehicles collided head-on, but no injuries were reported and damage to both cars was described as minor to moderate.

Markurec ould face one to three years in prison, officials said.