Mar 24, 2008 5:06 pm US/Pacific
Pursuit Ends In Head-On Collision In Tustin
The Driver Was Allegedly Drinking Before Leading Police On The Pursuit
A female motorist led police on a brief pursuit in Tustin Monday. Four people were injured during the chase as the allegedly drunk runaway driver drove the wrong way down a street and slammed the stolen SUV head-on into two other vehicles, authorities said.
The crash occurred around 3:10 p.m. near Warner and Red Hill avenues -- not long after the driver of the stolen Nissan Pathfinder fled from a California Highway Patrol officer who tried to pull her over for a traffic violation, according to CHP Officer Jennifer Hink.
"An officer made an enforcement stop on the 5 freeway at Red Hill, going northbound on the 5," Hink reported. "When he made the enforcement stop, they got off the freeway at Redhill. The vehicle immediately yielded and as the officer got out of his vehicle and started to walk up to the vehicle to make contact with the driver, the vehicle took off and the pursuit was engaged."
The pursuit did not last long as the driver instigated a head-on collision that left the Nissan overturned in the middle of the road.
Hink said four people -- including the female driver of the Nissan -- suffered minor to moderate injuries and were hospitalized.
She also reported that the SUV had been stolen March 14, but it was unclear whether the woman who was driving the vehicle Monday was a suspect in the theft.
"That is still under investigation and she has been transported to the hospital, so we don't have positive identification at this time," Hink said.
It was also not immediately clear if the driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, but one local broadcast reported that a bottle of vodka allegedly came out of the overturned SUV driven by the suspect.
