(WICHITA, Kan.) — A 23-year-old man remains in the hospital, after a car fleeing from Wichita police hit him. The accident happened in the early morning hours Saturday near I-135 and Harry.
Wichita police say just after midnight, two officers responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle in the 1000 block of east Gilbert. When they tried to stop the vehicle, the driver took off. Police ran the license plate and found it was a stolen vehicle.
The officer's began chasing the vehicle with lights and sirens south on Washington and east on Harry. Speeds reached about 65 miles an hour during the chase. After about two minutes, the suspect vehicle ran a red light and hit a Kia Spectra going through the intersection. The 23-year-old driver of the Kia went to the hospital with critical injuries.
Police say after the accident, the female driver of the suspect vehicle started to run on foot. Police tried to stop her and she fought them. They eventually tazed her. She and the male passenger went to the hospital but have been treated and released. She's in custody facing charges including aggravated battery, DUI, evade and elude, posession of cocaine and driving with an open container.
Deputy Chief Tom Stolz says the chase is now under investigation by both the Kansas Highway Patrol and Wichita police administration. Stolz says at first glance it appears the officers did the right thing, but it is under review.
He says chases are extremely dangerous and officers take them seriously. He says when citizens are being pulled over, they need to stop to avoid these situations. He says the city chase policy is reviewed each year and discussed regularly among officers.
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Man still hospitalized after crash during Wichita police chase
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He says no matter what, chases create a no win situation. "They are extremely dangerous, we know they are. No chase policies have been tried across the country. Communities that have gone to no chase policies go back after three months to a limited and restricted chase policy. That's what we try to draft in the City of Wichita," he said.
Stolz says suspects evading and eluding officers is a growing problem. In 2010, 185 suspects fled from police. 21 of those resulted in some sort of crash, whether with another vehicle, tree or building. In 2011 there were 220 evade and elude cases, 32 resulted in accidents. And so far this year, there have been 106 evade and elude cases. Stolz says Wichita is on track to beat last year's record.
