Jun 29, 2009 10:00 pm US/Eastern
High-Speed Chase Through Dallas Ends With Crash
DALLAS (CBS) ―
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Shane William Michel is seen in this undated file photo.
Denton County Sheriff's Dept.
Police were led on a wild car chase Monday afternoon, which came to an end in the intersection of North Plano Road and West Buckingham Road, directly along the dividing line between Garland and Richardson. That is where the car that was being chased, a grey Nissan Maxima, collided with a red Chevy pickup truck, reports CBS station KTVT-TV in Dallas.
The incident started around 1:00 p.m. Monday afternoon in Mesquite and lasted over an hour. The driver of the Nissan led police on a high-speed chase that went through several cities and on several major highways. The driver reached 90 mph at times, went off the road occasionally and even ran over a road sign, sending it flying over the hood of his car. He ended up on I-635, exited Walnut Hill Lane and started north on North Plano Road.
After encountering some stopped cars at a red light, the Nissan made its way into the intersection. That is where the red pickup truck, coming through the intersection, hit the suspect's vehicle right in the driver's side door. The impact sent the Nissan about 50 yards up West Buckingham Road.
Lance Anderson was driving the red Chevy pickup truck. He is now fine, except for some minor cuts and bruises. After the crash, he spoke with KTVT. "I'm driving down the road and the guy goes in front of me," said Anderson. "Saw the constable. Next thing I knew, he jumped in front of me."
The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Shane William Michel, was transported to Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas and seemed to be conscious and combative in the ambulance. Hospital spokeswoman Maria Carpenter later said that Michel is listed in critical condition.
The constable said that Michel was wanted out of Garland on a felony warrant for forgery. Dallas County constable assistant dispatcher Curtis Hettich said that the chase started as a routine traffic stop.
"The subject had a felony warrant out for him," said Dallas County Constable Michael Gothard. "My understanding is he had charges against him in the past. So, he is a dangerous subject and needs to be off the street."
Michel does indeed have a long criminal past including burglary, evading arrest and possession of marijuana.
But was the high-speed chase too dangerous?
Dallas County constables said that they called off the chase when it started to enter residential areas. It was then picked up by the Texas DPS until the constables later resumed control. Still, the constables have called the chase warranted.
"Based on the severity of the individual's warrants, we continued to pursue," said Sgt. V.T. Griffin. "We didn't see any hazard to the citizens of Dallas County."
"It looked like he had no regard for anyone else," said driver Dalfana Buford. "He was really going fast."
Meanwhile, some drivers think that the chase was just too dangerous. "Overall, I don't think it was good," said one driver, "for the fact that it was in a residential area."
The constables plan to review video footage of the incident to see if any changes need to be made to chase policy.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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