Collision involving NYPD vehicle pursuing suspect injures civilians, police said
Several pedestrians were injured, after a marked NYPD cruiser from the 41st Precinct collided with another car and jumped onto a sidewalk in the Bronx. Credit: Gregg Vigliotti for NY Daily News
An NYPD patrol car responding to a report of a stolen car got into a collision with another vehicle and injured more than a half dozen people at a Bronx intersection Thursday afternoon, officials said.
The crash occurred at around 3:10 p.m. as cops in a marked police vehicle from the 41st Precinct tried to get around a traffic jam at the intersection of Hoe and Westchester Avenues in the Longwood section, Chief of Patrol Jeff Maddrey told reporters at a news conference.
According to Maddrey, the police vehicle attempted to make a turn by crossing a double yellow line when a civilian vehicle directly in front suddenly made a turn in the same direction, resulting in both vehicles clipping each other and the police car being forced onto a sidewalk where six civilians were congregating. The victims struck ranged in age from a 65 year-old man to a five year-old child, explained Maddrey.
In total, 10 people including the two police officers in the marked vehicle were sent to area hospitals, said Maddrey. Among those hospitalized were two people, including a two year-old in the civilian vehicle involved in the collision, he added, noting that none appeared to have life threatening injuries.
“We don’t want to see anybody injured, particularly when the officers were trying to do the right thing,” said Maddrey. “They were trying to prevent a crime in progress, they were trying to apprehend someone … and unfortunately this collision occurred and people were injured and the officers.”
Because of the collision, the suspect in the stolen car case got away, said Maddrey.
The police vehicle was not speeding in pursuit when the accident occurred and had its lights and siren on at the time, according to Maddrey. The NYPD collision investigation unit was involved in the probe of the crash, officials said.
Anthony M. DeStefano has been a reporter for Newsday since 1986 and covers law enforcement, criminal justice and legal affairs from its New York City offices.
