ROCKLAND — A Portland man who was arrested Sept. 29 on charges of kidnapping and eluding an officer after he allegedly attacked a woman in Rockland and choked her unconscious, made his initial appearance in Knox County Unified Court Sept. 30.

Shane Hall, 29, of Portland, has also been charged with aggravated assault, criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, driving to endanger and refusing to submit to arrest.

Judge Susan Sparaco set Hall’s bail at $250,000 cash. He is currently being held at the Knox County Jail. Hall did not enter a plea during his arraignment.

According to the police affidavit, Rockland Police Sgt. Matthew Lindahl encountered Hall around 11:30 p.m. on Sept. 29, when he observed Hall's vehicle at Front and Main streets, stopped in an odd spot on the road facing south on Main Street. As Lindahl approached the vehicle, it started moving south and pulled over to the side of the road. Hall’s vehicle was partially in a parking spot and the road and Lindahl observed people moving inside.

When the officer was near Hall’s vehicle, he put it in reverse and backed up toward the cruiser and sped off.

Lindahl activated his lights and attempted to stop the vehicle and Hall refused. A short chase ensued and at one point during the chase, Hall’s vehicle was on the opposite side of the road, according to the police affidavit.  

During the pursuit, Rockland officers Alex Gaylor and Addison Cox assisted Lindahl, while officer Jacob Shirey positioned himself in a location to deploy a pursuit termination device, should the vehicle continue to flee.

While traveling west on Pleasant Street, Hall lost control of his vehicle and it crashed onto the lawn of a residence and struck a utility pole. The vehicle then spun around and the driver’s rear tire got hooked on the pole and flipped over, coming to rest on the passenger’s side of the car, according to the court documents.

Hall attempted to flee the scene by climbing through the sunroof, according to police, but was apprehended by Gaylor and Cox after a struggle. Hall told police he was not injured in the crash.

A female, who was a passenger in Hall's car, was attended to by Lindahl, and while he was talking with her, she told him that she had been walking home from work when Hall jumped from his vehicle wearing a ski mask, attacked her and choked her unconscious. She had tried to run away, but he had caught up with her and threw her to the ground. Hall told her that he would kill her if she screamed. He grabbed her necked and punched her in the face, according to the police affidavit.

"When the woman regained consciousness, she was in Hall's vehicle," said police in the news release. "The woman stated that she did not know Hall prior to the incident."

As officers were pursuing Hall's vehicle, the victim was calling 911 and told dispatchers that she had been kidnapped. But because the events unfolded so rapidly, the information had not been provided to the officers prior to the crash, according to police.

The victim told police that she bit Hall’s arm and grabbed his hair several times. Hall then pulled a knife and put it up to her throat so she stopped trying to fight at that point.

When police reviewed the tape of the victim’s call to 911, they heard the victim crying and yelling while there was a struggle. Hall yelled something to the effect of “if the female stopped she might live through this,” according to the court documents.

The 911 call ended when the vehicle crashed.

Police said that the victim's wallet and keys were later located at the scene where she said she was abducted.

The victim was transported to Pen Bay Medical Center and her injuries included a large bruise on her right eye and cheek area, red marks around her neck and a bruised finger.

Detective Sgt. Russell Thompson responded to the scene and is continuing the investigation.

Hall’s next court appearance will be Jan. 12, 2017 for a dispositional conference.

Reach Editorial Director Holly S. Edwards at hollyedwards@penbaypilot.com and 207-706-6655 and Sarah Shepherd at news@penbaypilot.com.