Florida Cop Catches 2-Month-Old Baby Thrown At Him After High-Speed Car Chase [Video]

A man was arrested after he allegedly threw his 2-month-old baby toward deputies at the end of a high-speed car chase through Gifford, Florida, two weeks ago.

John Henry James III, 32, is facing two felony counts of aggravated child abuse for the alleged throw, the Indian River County Sheriff's Office said in a statement released Friday. He is also facing other felony charges, including aggravated battery on uniformed personnel, battery on the same, reckless driving and resisting arrest with violence after his May 26 police pursuit.

According to police, the incident started when James drove off after officers attempted a traffic stop for failure to maintain the lane on State Road 60 in Vero Beach, Florida, at approximately 6:30 p.m.

James evaded authorities for around 40 minutes, dodging roadblocks, passing through a police spike strip and striking the front end of an officer's vehicle before he was finally cornered at Taylor Point Apartments.

James then exited the vehicle with the infant who had been in the car with him and ran through the apartment complex, child in hand, according to an arrest report. He later threw the child at officer Jacob Curby "in a further attempt to elude law enforcement," and the deputy caught the baby in midair, the report said.

"He just turned around overhand threw this 2-month-old at me from about 6 feet away," Curby was quoted by WESH as saying. "I'm just happy the kid was alright and that he has no injuries, that he's safe and the guy is behind bars."

Footage of the chase and subsequent arrest released by the sheriff's office Friday did not clearly show the father hurling the baby at police, but Curby can be seen carrying the child as James was on the ground being restrained by officers.

"You can’t throw a baby at us and expect us to treat you with kid gloves," Sheriff Eric Flowers was cited as saying in the police statement.

The baby was relocated to safety following the successful catch. The Department of Children and Families is now handling the child's portion of the case.

James, who resisted arrest, reportedly kicked and bit deputies as he was loaded into the back of a police cruiser, police said. He was taken to nearby Fire Station 12 and checked by EMTs after he told officers he had asthma and complained he could not breathe. James continued to resist even while being loaded into an ambulance to be taken to Cleveland Clinic Indian River Medical Center.

According to the police statement, James was medically cleared from the hospital on June 1 after being treated for pre-existing conditions. He was then booked into the Indian River County Jail, where he is currently being held without bond.