New details: Teens arrested after wild pursuit through Cleveland’s western suburbs
LAKEWOOD, Ohio (WJW) – News details are emerging about a police pursuit of a carload of teenagers in a stolen Kia in Cleveland’s western suburbs early Tuesday morning.
Investigators say the chase illustrates why changes are needed in the juvenile justice system.
It began when Lakewood police tried to pull over the car because its lights were off.
It turns out the Kia Soul had been stolen, and it quickly became clear the driver and four other teenagers in the car, each wearing a mask, had no intention of stopping.
Police say during the pursuit, the driver bounced off curbs and drove across yards, flattening several of the tires on the car.
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A pursuing officer told a dispatcher, “we are now on West Clifton. It just lost its tire, it’s on all rims.”
The pursuit continued into Rocky River and then Westlake, where the car spun out of control in an intersection and crashed in a police SUV. One of the teens jumped out and ran but the driver kept going.
Video shows the car traveling westbound in the eastbound lanes of Center Ridge Road, and a Westlake police officer decided to end the chase by executing a so-called PIT maneuver to spin out the car.
The remaining teens jumped out of the car and ran, but two of them were quickly arrested.
One of them, a 17-year-old, was carrying a loaded gun, investigators say.
During an interview on Friday, Lakewood police say they were disappointed when juvenile court officials quickly decided to place the other teen on home detention with an ankle bracelet and then directed Lakewood officers to drive him home.
“It is somewhat frustrating. The main thing and the biggest concern for me is this not pulling over, driving dangerously and endangering other people like that. That’s the biggest takeaway I have from this whole thing,” Lakewood Police Captain Gary Stone said.
Investigators also revealed that one of the teens who bailed out of the car ended up hiding in a wooded area in Westlake.
Police say he then called his mother and asked her to give him a ride home.
Officers pulled up as the teen was getting into his mother’s car and placed him under arrest.
When questioned, the mother said she had no idea that her son had been in the stolen car with the other teens.
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Police say the wild pursuit reflects a lawless attitude of juveniles who have no concern about being held accountable by the court system.
“These thefts of these vehicles and not pulling over for the police has severe repercussions and we’re very fortunate in this situation that no one was hurt. Something like this, as serious as this is, deserves prosecution under our juvenile justice system, it really does,” said Captain Stone.
Police are now trying to track down the teens that got away Tuesday morning, but they admit they are concerned the juveniles will simply be set free by the juvenile court without any serious punishment.
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