HEMET: Woman hospitalized after high-speed pursuit ends in rollover crash
HEMET — Details are still emerging and officials have not yet released any information after a dangerous, high-speed pursuit ended when the driver lost control of the vehicle she was fleeing from police in and her sedan overturned. The vehicle rolled on a dirt shoulder near Winchester and Scott Roads in Hemet.
A woman in a speeding Buick sedan was hospitalized when her vehicle overturned at the end of a dangerous, high speed chase. Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents photo
The female driver, who has not yet been publicly identified, was rushed to Inland Valley Medical Center for treatment of unspecified injuries she received in the Tuesday, Oct. 10, pursuit-related accident.
The incident began shortly before 7 p.m., when City of Hemet emergency dispatchers received a 911 call reporting a reckless driver in a tan Buick sedan. According to the 911 caller, a woman was driving between 75 and 100 mph, southbound on Lyon Avenue approaching Florida Avenue.
Hemet PD officers located the speeding vehicle and attempted to conduct a traffic enforcement stop. The driver refused to yield and accelerated away from the officers at which time officials initiated a vehicle pursuit.
As the pursuit wound its way through the city and rural, outlying communities, officers requested assistance from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Aviation Unit in “Star-9.” Riverside County sheriff’s deputies and Gang Task Force members also assisted during the pursuit.
During the chase, the driver stopped her vehicle several times and officials repeatedly set up to perform a high-risk vehicle stop. However, each time the woman stopped she acted in a bizarre manner and refused to comply with officer’s orders. Every time the woman stopped, she eventually fled again.
At times, the driver refused to stop for posted stop signs or stop lights, drove in an extremely reckless manner and drove into oncoming lanes of traffic, without regard for the safety of other citizens or pursuing officers.
Personal items, including diapers, groceries and a baby stroller were thrown from the pursued sedan when it overturned at the end of a pursuit. Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents photo
With aviation crew members in Star-9 assisting from overhead, officials in the pursuit requested additional resources, including spike strips to slow the driver’s progress as well as less-lethal options to be available at the termination of the pursuit.
The chase eventually ended when the driver lost control of the Buick while speeding southbound on Winchester Road, just north of Scott Road. As the driver lost control, her sedan crashed through a fence, overturned and rolled into a dirt field.
The vehicle continued overturning and eventually came to rest on its side.
Officers rushed in to provide medical aid to the injured woman, who was still inside the wrecked vehicle. After she was extricated from the Buick, medics transported her to IVMC for further treatment and evaluation.
After the accident personal items, including diapers, groceries and a baby stroller were seen strewn about the dirt shoulder where the woman’s car overturned.
Official radio traffic at the time later indicated officials determined the driver had an outstanding warrant for dangerous drugs out of Santa Monica.
As of this report, the woman remains hospitalized.
This is a developing story that will be updated as additional information becomes available.
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Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents video
Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents video
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Trevor Montgomery, who recently moved from Riverside County to Shasta County, runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, The Valley Chronicle and Anza Valley Outlook as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 27 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 14 grandchildren.
So sad👹. I hate f-ing drugs and the ones who destribute them. A child, maybe more without the Mommy that should have used her head with some smarts. Prayers for the loved ones she left behind.