A police chase on Thursday afternoon left one California Highway Patrol officer severely injured as he pursued the suspect on the Imperial Highway off-ramp of the eastbound 91 freeway.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Police officers received reports of the crash at about 12:25 p.m. and sent patrol cars and medical assistance to the scene of the crash.
California Highway Patrol Officer Devon Boatman said that the officer was chasing another motorcycle rider who was under suspicion of speeding on the eastbound side of the 91. The motorcyclist was riding a Suzuki GSX-R.
Apparently the accident occurred while the officer was following the motorcyclist on the off-ramp, but the policeman’s bike swerved off the road and hit a patch of loose dirt, which caused him to go flying into a ditch. Authorities found him lying on the side of the road. He suffered from severe injuries and was taken to the hospital.
Authorities said that the ramp would reopen at about 3 p.m.
When officers arrived at the scene, the other motorcyclist had fled. He was wearing a leather jacket and a full-faced yellow helmet. He was riding a black and yellow motorbike.
Police are still searching for him, to question him about his involvement with the accident.
Police chases are one of the more common forms of accidents throughout the United States. In Los Angeles in 2002, there were about 700 police pursuits alone. Some of these lead to high-profile accidents, which have left innocent people severely injured or even dead.
In 2005, riots occurred after a local resident stole a vehicle and led police on a high-speed chase before crashing the car into a tree. The crash left his two passengers dead and received worldwide media coverage.
Another incident occurred when a university student attempted to outrun a police vehicle in Canberra, Australia and accidentally crashed the vehicle. This accident called into question many of the policies that police officers use during a high-speed chase.
Sometimes, the chase did not even involve a road-safe vehicle. On June 4, 2004, Marvin Heemeyer stole a bulldozer that had been modified and went on a rampage, destroying the town hall, the bank, the library, a concrete building and the former house of the mayor in Granby, Colorado, before he was stopped by police forces.
Another police chase ended tragically when a man stole a M60 Patton tank from an armory of the Army National Guard. Nelson destroyed large parts of San Diego, California while he drove on the I-5 freeway. He crushed several cars and injured multiple people, before he was stopped by the destruction of the tire tread. Nelson was killed in the accident.
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