'Bored' 10-Year-Old Led Cops On Wild Chase
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CLEVELAND, OH (CBSMiami) - For the second time this month a 10-year-old boy stole his family's car, this time leading his parent and the highway patrol on a high speed chase.
According to the Cleveland Police Department, the boy left his mother's home on Hadley Road in Cleveland around 9 a.m. She went after him and then called the police for back up when she realized that she couldn't get him to pull over herself.
"911, What city is your emergency in," asked the emergency operator.
"Umm, well we're between Cleveland and Lakeland. My 10-year-old stole his dad's car and I'm following him and he's running from me. He's already wrecked the car, he needs to stop," she said.
Officers began following the boy. At times the chase hit speeds of more than 100 mph. It at mile marker 121 on the Ohio turnpike - more than 50 miles away -- in Erie County.
Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper Richard Reeder said eight cruisers were involved in the chase.
"In any pursuit you have to weigh the risk versus reward when chasing a vehicle, and knowing that it was a 10-year-old child involved as a driver there's a big unknown there," said Reeder. "One of the troopers made visual contact eye-to-eye contact with the child and motioned for him to pull over, and the child physically shook his head no and continued driving."
Reeder said that troopers tried to stop the boy by putting stop sticks on the highway to disable the vehicle.
"We were able to put them all the way across the road way, the Ohio Turnpike, three lanes. At that point in time, the child swerved to the right and started driving in the ditch," said Reeder.
Reeder said that the boy driving in the ditch slowed the chase down significantly. Before he could could get back on the highway and speed up again, an highway patrol commander hit the back of the car while several other cruisers blocked his path ending the chase.
"When we were able to get him out of the car he was very agitated. He kicked one of the troopers in the shin, he then spit in the face of the same trooper," said Reeder.
The boy was taken to the hospital as a precaution. When asked why he did it, the boy said he "was bored and decided to go for a joyride."
