Jul 8, 2008 4:02 am US/Pacific
5 Arrested After DUI Chase Through South L.A.
LOS ANGELES
An alleged DUI driver has been arrested after leading authorities on a pursuit that ended when he and a passenger lept from the car in South Los Angeles, leaving three passengers in the still-moving vehicle.
Sheriff's deputies spotted a man driving recklessly at Budlong Avenue and West Century Boulevard in the unincorporated Westmont area around 11:10 p.m. Monday night, Lt. Kent Wegener of the Los Angeles County Sheriff
Department's Lennox Station said.
The deputies attempted to pull the car over, but the driver did not comply, triggering a chase, Wegener said.
Deputies followed the car on Century Boulevard to the northbound San Diego (405) Freeway until California Highway Patrol officers took over the pursuit as it moved to surface streets, and onto the Harbor (110) Freeway, he said.
Shortly after 11:30 p.m., the pursuit ended in South Los Angeles on Vernon Avenue just east of the Harbor Freeway, according to David Porter of the CHP.
As the chase ended, the driver and a front seat passenger jumped out of the moving car, leaving three people inside the vehicle, according to footage shown on a local news station.
Officers quickly took the pair into custody, Wegener said. Their names were not immediately released.
Footage showed the unmanned vehicle come to a stop when it a hit a tree, and officers took the backseat passengers into custody.
"All parties were taken into custody without further incident," Porter said.
It was not immediately known if any of the suspects were hurt during the chase.
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