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Carjacking suspect pleads guilty to robbery, sentenced to 10 years

Posted at 8:41 AM, May 01, 2019
and last updated 2019-05-01 10:41:02-04
Clarence Pate
Clarence Pate

COLORADO SPRINGS – A man charged with a violent carjacking earlier this year has opted out of a lengthy jury trial, instead choosing to plead guilty to robbery.

Clarence Pate was charged with kidnapping, robbery and assault. In exchange for his plea, Pate was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Pate was arrested in February after a woman called 911 to report a stranger flagged her down on Highway 24 as if he were in need of help.  She told authorities she gave him a ride, but as they approached Academy Blvd he began behaving erratically and assaulted her.

When she tried to get out of the car with her keys, she said he pulled her back into the vehicle. The woman struggled and got out of the vehicle, and that’s when police said the suspect tried to throw her into traffic.

AMR paramedics driving by the scene saw the encounter and stopped to help. That’s where police said Pate assaulted one of the medics. The paramedic suffered minor injuries in the exchange and Pate was arrested shortly afterward. The woman suffered minor injuries.