A suspected drunk driver in a 2014 Jeep Cherokee led deputies from the Washtenaw and, then, the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office on a chase in the early morning hours of Saturday, Sept. 16, that ended with a foot chase and apprehension in the Village of Pinckney.
According to a release from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office, at about 4:35 a.m. Saturday, the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office was actively pursuing the suspected drunk driver who had been observed passed out in a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. When the driver was awakened, he fled at a high rate of speed, entering Livingston County in southern Hamburg Township, where officers from the Hamburg and Green Oak township police departments attempted to assist. The Washtenaw deputies eventually lost sight of the vehicle and pursuit was terminated.
A Livingston County Sheriff’s Office deputy near Pettysville Road and M-36 then observed the suspect driving at a high rate of speed, and then making a high-speed, reckless turn onto Pettysville Road. The deputy tried to stop the vehicle using emergency lights and siren, but it continued to flee at a high rate of speed, driving recklessly, running civilian cars off the roadway, almost rear-ending civilian cars, running stop signs, and traveling above the speed limit.
The suspect then entered the Village of Pinckney, still speeding. The vehicle turned onto Mill Street, and when it came to the dead end, it led the roadway, drove through yards and hit a fire hydrant. Because of the driver’s dangerous driving, a blocking maneuver was performed; the vehicle keep on moving, and another deputy from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office positioned his vehicle in front of the Jeep in an attempt to stop it. The suspect turned into the front end of the patrol car, striking it. The Jeep became inoperable, and the suspect fled briefly on foot before being arrested without further incident.
No one was injured during the incident. The Jeep Cherokee and two Livingston County Sheriff’s Office vehicles sustained functional damage.
