A 24-year-old Southfield-area man sideswiped another vehicle on southbound I-75 near mile marker 14 before dawn Sunday, then fled the scene and crashed through a locked security gate at a Ford warehouse property off Exit 14, according to Monroe Public Safety officers who responded to the initial collision.
The driver he hit, a 56-year-old Toledo-area man, followed the fleeing vehicle after it left the freeway, according to a statement from the Monroe Public Safety Department. The pursuit ended at 3200 East Elm Avenue, where the fleeing car crashed through a closed, illuminated security gate marked with a large stop sign at the Ford River Raisin Warehouse. The Toledo-area man was not involved in this second crash, the department said.
The impact caused significant damage to the gate and dislodged one of the fleeing vehicle's front wheels, according to the same statement. The car continued eastbound on East Elm Avenue, with a dislodged wheel and damage to the vehicle. No one was hurt in either crash, and police said alcohol was not a factor.
Citations Issued, Reckless Driving Charge Possible
Monroe Public Safety issued citations to the 24-year-old driver, and the Monroe County Prosecutor's Office is now considering an additional reckless driving charge, per the department's report. Under Michigan Compiled Laws § 257.618, leaving the scene of a property-damage crash is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a $100 fine, and six points on a driver's license, according to Michigan Auto Law. Michigan law does not generally make every hit-and-run crash causing injury or death punishable by up to 15 years in prison; the 15-year maximum applies to an at-fault driver who flees a fatal crash, while ordinary injury and serious-impairment cases have different penalties.
A reckless driving charge under Michigan Compiled Laws § 257.626 carries its own penalties — up to 93 days in jail, a fine of up to $500, six points, and a mandatory 90-day license suspension, according to the Shelton Law Group. Proving that charge requires prosecutors to establish willful or wanton disregard for safety rather than simple negligence, per the Davis Law Group. Separately, Michigan Compiled Laws § 257.618a requires drivers in non-injury collisions to move an operable vehicle to a safe spot off the roadway when it's safe to do so, a duty enforced as a civil infraction rather than a crime, according to George Law.
Police Warn Against Chasing Fleeing Drivers
Drivers should call 911 rather than follow or pursue a fleeing vehicle after a crash.
Legal and traffic safety experts warn that private chases sharply increase the risk of high-speed collisions and road rage incidents for everyone else on the road, according to Phillips, Hayden & Labbee, LLP.
A Notorious Exit With a Limited Future
CBS News identifies Elm Avenue as Exit 14 in its coverage of the surrounding project area, according to CBS News. That stretch of freeway carries more than 61,000 vehicles a day between Detroit and Toledo. The same outlet reported that the Michigan Department of Transportation announced this month that a planned 2028-to-2030 rebuild of I-75 through Monroe County will permanently remove the Elm Avenue interchange altogether.
The ramp's crash history and Monroe County's 2023 traffic-crash totals are not detailed in the available account.
The Monroe Public Safety Department handled Sunday's investigation.
