Woman, 2 Young Sons Injured In Crash After Lengthy Police Chase Now Out Of Hospital: Alderman

MORGAN PARK — A police chase from Indiana to Morgan Park resulted in a crash that hospitalized two young boys, among others, early Thursday — but an official said they’re now out of the hospital.

The headline-making crash saw Indiana police chase a driver from Indiana to Morgan Park, where the driver crashed while the two boys, 3 years old and 3 months old, as well as their mother were inside his car, officials said. The boys and woman were hospitalized immediately afterward, but Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th) told Block Club on Friday he heard from law enforcement that the occupants of the car were treated and released. 

The investigation into the chase and crash is ongoing.

The chase began just after 2 a.m. Thursday when an officer attempted to stop the driver of a suspected stolen Toyota SUV on northbound I-65 near 61st Avenue in Hobart, Indiana, according to the Sheriff’s Office for Lake County, Indiana.

Police said the driver, who had the 26-year-old woman and their two young sons in the car, refused to stop and fled, taking I-80/94 into Illinois. 

The chase continued for over a half hour until the driver of the Toyota SUV hit a parked car near the 11500 block of South Longwood Drive in Morgan Park. The car turned over onto its side and slid. That happened at 2:38 a.m., according to Chicago police.

Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez Jr. said the driver, a 30-year-old man, had no complaints of pain or injury after the crash but was taken to a nearby hospital to be evaluated. 

The woman and her two sons were taken to a local hospital. The woman complained of chest pain after the crash, and the 3-year-old had scrapes to his ear. Lake County police said the 3-month-old was hospitalized for evaluation. 

In a statement, Martinez said the driver was found to have several active warrants through Lake County, Indiana; Michigan City, Indiana; Cook County, Illinois; and Michigan. He said the warrants are for charges including a weapon offense, robbery, fraud and counterfeiting.

Martinez said no officers were injured in the pursuit.

Charges were pending in the case as of Friday afternoon, according to law enforcement. In a statement, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said the department’s policy is to pursue those who break the law regardless of where they attempt to evade police.  

“Officers face these types of decisions every day and we evaluate each case on an individual basis,” Martinez said.

“We take public safety seriously. It’s unfortunate in this case the driver chose to flee with children in the car, putting them at risk. It was impossible for officers to know there were young children in the vehicle.”