A wrong-way police chase that started in Jefferson Parish ended with a crunch in New Orleans' Lower Garden District, when a stolen Hyundai Elantra slammed into a parked car on Polymnia Street and two teens were hauled off in handcuffs, according to Louisiana State Police. Troopers say the car was confirmed stolen and that the 18-year-old driver and his 15-year-old passenger were riding with narcotics, a firearm fitted with an extended magazine and what appeared to be a machine-gun conversion device before the pursuit came to a sudden stop. The driver now faces a stack of charges, while the juvenile is booked on weapons and theft-related counts.
According to a post from Louisiana State Police, troopers from Troop B and Troop NOLA first spotted the Hyundai near Harvey, where they say it was racking up traffic violations. When they tried to pull the sedan over, it kept going, heading westbound in the eastbound lanes of Manhattan Boulevard before the driver exited at St. Charles Street and crashed into a parked vehicle on Polymnia Street. Both occupants bolted, but troopers report that one was caught at the wreck and the other was found moments later trying to get into a family member's parked car at a nearby apartment complex. The Elantra, which investigators say showed signs of forced entry and a tampered steering column, came back as stolen, and troopers say they recovered narcotics along with a handgun outfitted with an extended magazine and a machine-gun conversion device from inside.
What troopers say they recovered
"Troopers located narcotics and a firearm equipped with an extended magazine and a machine gun conversion device," the agency wrote in its post. The car itself, state police said, bore the hallmarks of a theft job, with evidence of forced entry and a damaged steering column, and it was confirmed to have been reported stolen. Investigators identified the driver as 18-year-old James Walker, who the post states was booked on charges including aggravated flight from an officer, hit-and-run, theft of a motor vehicle, reckless operation, resisting arrest and possession of Schedule II tapentadol. The 15-year-old passenger, according to the same post, faces counts of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, unlawful possession of a machine gun, illegal possession of a handgun by a juvenile, resisting an officer, possession of marijuana and illegal possession of stolen things.
Legal context for the charges
Handling or possession of machine guns is prohibited under Louisiana law and carries felony penalties under the statutes that regulate those weapons, as outlined in La. R.S. 40:1755. The offense of illegal possession of a handgun by a juvenile, including its first and repeat penalty structure, is set out in La. R.S. 14:95.8. Tapentadol, the drug state police say was found in Walker's possession, is classified as a Schedule II opioid, a status that can increase the severity of related narcotics charges, according to research published in Pain Medicine via PubMed Central.
What happens next
State police highlighted the arrests as part of broader efforts to get violent offenders off the streets, curb illegal drug activity and return stolen vehicles to their owners. From here, prosecutors in Jefferson and Orleans parishes will review the case file, look over the evidence from the pursuit and crash, and decide whether to bring additional charges or seek to move the juvenile's case into adult court.
