St. Petersburg police arrest two different men driving the same Mercedes

ST. PETERSBURG — A man accused of ramming a police cruiser with a Mercedes-Benz convertible and then trying to flee from officers by smashing through a backyard fence was arrested on Monday.

Police said they arrested two different men behind the wheel of that same 2004 silver Mercedes in a 21-hour span.

The first arrest took place about 5:40 p.m. Sunday, according to St. Petersburg police, when they pulled the Mercedes over after several traffic infractions.

Terence Lamar Morgan, 37, of 1908 21st St. S, was arrested on a charge of driving without a license. Police said he is not the owner of the Mercedes.

On Monday, the same officers said they saw a different man driving the Mercedes, which has a Texas license plate, around 2:30 p.m. This driver also committed several traffic infractions, police said.

So officers pulled the driver over. The Mercedes pulled into the driveway at 929 James Ave. S. But when an officer walked up to the car, according to police spokesman Bill Proffitt, the driver put the Mercedes in reverse and rammed an occupied police cruiser behind it.

Then the Mercedes pulled forward, police said, and tried to escape by driving through the backyard fence, only to get stuck. The driver, Donnell Antonio Clark, 23, tried to run away, police said, but was subdued after two Taser blasts.

Clark, of 341 20th Ave. S, was arrested on several charges, including aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer.

He is not the owner of the Mercedes, either, police said. The owner reported the car stolen two hours after Clark's arrest, Proffitt said, but later told police he had loaned the car.

Morgan was released on his own recognizance Sunday night. Clark was held in the Pinellas County Jail in lieu of $55,750 bail.