MANSFIELD — A 62-year-old Orchard Park Road man was taken to OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital on Wednesday after he crashed his vehicle during a high-speed pursuit on Lexington Avenue.
According to the Richland County Sheriff’s Office report, the chase topped more than 100 mph and ended when the man’s Jeep Renegade “turned right suddenly” and crashed head on into a utility pole near the intersection of Bellaire Drive.
According to the RCSO reports, deputies responded to the area at 3:40 p.m. after a woman called about a “mental health incident” and said her husband was depressed and was “high on pills and drinking alcohol while driving.”
Dep. Jarod Bennett saw the vehicle and tried to make a traffic stop near the intersection of Lexington and Milton avenues, just south of Hanley Road.
The man initially stopped near Snyder Funeral Home on Lexington Avenue and then drove away northbound at a high rate of speed. Bennett began the chase and was joined by Dep. Michael Beasley.
In his report, Beasley said he was familiar with the suspect, including having to use force against him in the past while trying to commit him for a mental evaluation.
Bennett said the suspect ran the red light at Lexington Avenue and Hanley Road as speeds reached around 100 mph.
“At or about the intersection of Lexington Avenue and Bellaire Drive, [the suspect] turned right suddenly into a utility pole, causing the bottom portion to break off,” Bennett said in his report.
He said the man’s Jeep “began to roll, crashing through the property of (1991 Lexington Ave.), striking and destroying a small shed in the front yard and eventually coming to rest after striking a tree.”
Beasley reported it “appeared the [suspect] intentionally veered off the road, striking a telephone pole.”
The deputies radioed for fire/EMS and worked to extract the man from his vehicle.
“I advised Dep. Beasley to get his fire extinguisher due to part of the engine block being on fire, which was out of the vehicle,” Bennett said.
“I attempted to find a way to get [the suspect] out the vehicle. The doors were all jammed shut so I broke the driver door window. I initially could hear [the suspect] talking, but he soon later became unconscious, (but) still breathing,” Bennett said.
Additional law enforcement units and fire/EMS reached the scene. The man was extracted from the Jeep and taken to the hospital.
Sertraline and simvastatin pills were found inside the vehicle, as was an open beer can.
Bennett said the man would be charged with failure to comply with the order of a law enforcement officer, disregard of safety on a roadway, failure to obey traffic control devices, speed, turn signal violation, open container of alcohol in a vehicle and driving under suspension.
Additional charges could also be considered.
The suspect in the case was cited for DUI in July, a case still pending, according to Mansfield Municipal Court online records. He had been granted limited driving privileges, according to the records.
The road remained closed for several hours after the crash.