A short but fast-moving pursuit through Alhambra spilled onto the westbound I-10 on Sunday and ended when officers boxed in a car at Atlantic Boulevard and Shorb Street, arresting a local driver who, according to police, told bystanders, "I am not stopping for the police." The man, identified by officers as Alhambra resident Christian Chahine, was taken from the vehicle and booked into the Alhambra Police Department jail after allegedly refusing to pull over when officers first tried to stop him.
Police say the pursuit started after officers responded to a call near San Marino Avenue and Atlantic Boulevard and attempted a traffic stop. When the driver failed to yield, the chase headed toward Ninth Street, entered the westbound I-10 on-ramp, and later exited at Fremont Avenue before ending at Atlantic and Shorb, where officers surrounded the vehicle and took the driver into custody, according to an Alhambra Police Department Facebook post.
Pursuit Policy And Officer Discretion
On paper, Alhambra officers are supposed to think twice before hitting the gas. The city’s written pursuit policy tells officers to balance the need to catch a suspect with the risk to everyone else on the road, weighing factors such as the seriousness of the alleged offense, current traffic conditions, and the potential danger to bystanders. As laid out in the Alhambra Police Department policy manual, supervisors are expected to monitor those variables in real time and can call off a chase if continuing it would create too much hazard on busy corridors such as the I-10.
How The Chase Unfolded
According to the Alhambra Police Department Facebook post, officers first tried to stop the vehicle near San Marino Avenue and Atlantic Boulevard. The driver allegedly failed to yield at Ninth Street, then merged onto the I-10 westbound on-ramp, turning what started as a surface-street stop into a freeway pursuit. After exiting at Fremont Avenue, the vehicle continued back onto city streets and finally came to a stop at Atlantic Boulevard and Shorb Street, where officers boxed it in and removed the driver.
The department’s post says officers heard the suspect tell nearby bystanders, "I am not stopping for the police." Afterward, police say the driver told officers he had not seen the red and blue lights or heard the sirens, a claim that will likely get scrutiny as the investigation moves forward.
Local Pattern And Context
Short freeway chases are not exactly rare in this stretch of the San Gabriel Valley. In March, an I-10 chase near Chelsea Street also ended with an arrest after officers followed a driver from surface streets onto the freeway. That earlier incident highlighted how quickly a routine stop can jump to freeway speeds, complicating split-second decisions about how long to pursue and what it means for everyone else stuck in traffic.
In Sunday’s case, the department has not yet listed formal charges in its public statements. The arrest remains under investigation, and police say additional details will be released when available.
