The police pursuit of a convicted felon who absconded from parole that began in Hart County came to an end off Peonia Road (Hwy 88) in Grayson County.
The Grayson County Sheriff’s Office was alerted at approximately 7:30 Sunday night that a pursuit on Cub Run Hwy (Hwy 88) in Hart County was only minutes away from entering Grayson County.
The pursuit, which began after police noticed that a Chevrolet Impala had expired registration, entered Grayson County on Peonia Road only minutes later, as speeds reached at least 104 miles per hour.
The Impala turned onto Indian Cliff Road, in the 9800 block of Peonia Road, where the pursuit ended. The male driver, 40-year-old James Arthur Butler, of Hodgenville, then fled on foot but was quickly taken into custody.
Grayson County EMS was dispatched to the scene.
Butler was arrested by the Munfordville Police Department, according to the Hart County Jail, and charged with two counts of fleeing or evading police (motor vehicle, on foot), multiple counts of first-degree wanton endangerment of a police officer, resisting arrest, reckless driving, first-degree criminal mischief, possession of an open alcoholic beverage container in a motor vehicle, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, driving 26 mph or more over the limit, driving on a suspended/revoked operator’s license, and no registration plates along with other moving and non-moving violations.
He was also served with a failure to appear warrant that carries a $25,000 cash bond. Butler was lodged in the Hart County Jail.
Kentucky State Police, and possibly other law enforcement agencies, participated in the pursuit and arrest. The pursuit ended prior to a Grayson County deputy arriving in the area.
The suspect is a convicted felon, according to the Kentucky Department of Corrections (KDC), and is listed as having absconded from parole. He was convicted in LaRue County for theft by unlawful taking and first-degree criminal mischief, both class D felonies.
Butler is on probation until May 2030. His supervision “begin date” was May 6, 2025, according to the KDC.
He has been arrested at least 34 times since 2005 in LaRue, Hart, Marion, Nelson, and Hardin counties on charges ranging from drug trafficking and drug possession to theft and criminal mischief, according to online records.
Butler’s most recent arrest, other than an arrest warrant for “other police agency” in Hardin County in September 2025, came in February of this year in Hart County where he was charged with theft by unlawful taking from a building, first-degree criminal mischief and first-degree persistent felony offender.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
