Teen flees at 90 mph after fight at park
Staff writer
A 16-year-old rural Hillsboro resident led police on a 90-mph chase along Hillsboro’s D St. after a fight at 7:45 p.m. Saturday involving 14- to 17-year-olds in Memorial Park.
According to police and offense reports filed in the case, the 16-year-old pushed his 17-year-old girlfriend from Peabody and struck a 14-year-old boy from Hillsboro in the face during an altercation in the park.
Police were notified when a girl who said she arrived after the fight told dispatchers one of the teens involved was attempting to get into her vehicle.
Assistant chief Randy Brazil arrived a minute later, and a red Ford Mustang with a temporary license plate sped away west on D St. in what Brazil termed a reckless manner.
Monitored radio transmissions indicated speeds reached up to 90 mph.
Brazil pursued the Mustang west out of the city onto Goldenrod Rd., attempting for four miles to get the Mustang to stop.
After recognizing the driver, Brazil decided for safety’s sake to suspend his pursuit and instead head toward the driver’s home to speak to driver’s parents about the incident.
The driver reportedly was observed running a stop sign on US-56 and continuing back toward Hillsboro.
Sheriff’s deputy Joel Womochil, who along with deputy Matt Regier had been monitoring the chase, stopped the vehicle near K-15.
Womochil told dispatchers he would wait for backup before attempting to arrest the driver, whom he said was combative.
Brazil informed the driver’s parents and then joined Womochil, as did Regier.
Separate city and county charges are likely to be requested against the driver, who was taken to juvenile intake.
According to offense reports, Hillsboro will ask for juvenile charges of domestic battery, battery, attempting to flee or elude police, speeding, reckless driving, interference with law enforcement, and running a stop sign.
The offense report indicates alcohol and drugs were not involved.
Radio transmissions indicate that the owner of the vehicle asked that it not be towed, but Brazil denied the request, saying it “was used during the commission of a crime.”
The suspect’s identity is protected because he is a juvenile. However, according to monitored transmissions, he was involved in a traffic accident two months ago in which he lost control of a pickup truck.
In that incident, the truck, carrying three other teens at the time, went off a county road and flipped onto its side.
The accident was blamed on inattentive driving and driving too fast for conditions, but no tickets were issued.