A driver in a vehicle connected to an individual wanted on an assault-with-a-deadly-weapon warrant tried to outrun U.S. Park Police late Monday night, slamming into another vehicle before crashing into a median in Prince George's County. Both the fleeing driver and the person in the other car were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, and the suspect was taken into custody once the chase finally ended.
Traffic Stop Turns Into Cross-Border Pursuit
The incident began at approximately 9:58 p.m. Monday when U.S. Park Police officers attempted to stop a vehicle near Suitland Parkway and Stanton Road in Washington, D.C., according to WJLA. The driver failed to yield and fled instead, touching off a pursuit that carried the chase out of the District and into Maryland.
During the pursuit, the driver struck another vehicle before the chase reached its final stretch. The outlet's report notes the driver then attempted to make a U-turn near the 5100 block of Indian Head Highway in Prince George's County, Maryland, and crashed into the median, a collision that disabled the vehicle and brought the chase to a halt.
Two Hospitalized, Suspect Still Unidentified
Both people involved in the crash were taken to local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries — the suspect as well as the sole occupant of the vehicle that was struck during the pursuit, per the same account. U.S. Park Police arrested the suspect, but as of Tuesday morning had not released the suspect's identity or details about potential charges.
Officers said the vehicle was connected to an individual wanted on a warrant for assault with a deadly weapon, though the station's report does not specify further details about that warrant. It remains unclear what information led officers to attempt the stop near Suitland Parkway in the first place.
Part of a Pattern of Park Police Pursuits
Monday's chase adds to a string of recent Park Police pursuits across the D.C. region. In the first month after new pursuit guidelines took effect, there were 28 federal police chases in Washington, D.C., including 22 involving Park Police, and 18 of those pursuits resulted in crashes, according to Courthouse News. Previous guidelines generally limited officers to initiating chases for violent felonies, threats of violence, or felonies involving a firearm, with other scenarios requiring supervisory approval, the outlet reported.
Other recent Park Police pursuits in the area illustrate the range of outcomes. In one case, a driver wanted in connection with an armed robbery struck five vehicles before crashing on C Street NE, with the driver and two passengers taken into custody, according to DC News Now. In another, a driver wanted for an armed carjacking fled a traffic stop, hit two vehicles, and flipped on Branch Avenue near Lyndale Place SE; police said they recovered a shotgun from that vehicle.
Not every pursuit has ended without serious harm. Park Police have said a driver fleeing a pursuit on Taft Bridge struck and killed moped driver Nolberto Meza, an outcome DC News Now's reporting places among the more severe consequences tied to these chases. A pursuit stemming from a reported stolen vehicle began in Washington and ended roughly 10 miles away in Montgomery County, Maryland, with four juvenile suspects arrested at the scene after minor collisions; no injuries were reported.
No further information about Monday's crash, including the suspect's name or any charges, had been released as of Tuesday morning.
