CHICAGO _ A Chicago police car crashed into an SUV, killing the driver, while chasing a man suspected of a homicide and several shootings in the northwest suburbs Wednesday night, authorities said.
The marked police car then spun into a white Hummer stopped at a red light in the 1600 block of West Irving Park Road, injuring three people inside around 8:15 p.m., police said. The two officers in the squad car were also injured. All five were reported in fair condition.
The suspect later hit a pole and was arrested after a brief foot chase in the 800 block of West Pershing Road. The man, 22, was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in serious condition.
The pursuit began shortly after 8 p.m. when Chicago police spotted a dark-colored Jeep around 115th Street and Cottage Grove Avenue that was possibly wanted for a homicide and several shootings in Norridge and Harwood Heights, police said in a statement.
Officers tried curbing the Jeep in the 9400 block of South Union Avenue but it sped off. Police chased it to Irving Park Road and Keystone Avenue, where the Jeep was involved in a traffic crash. No one was reported injured.
The offender ran to a gas station in the 3900 block of West Irving Park Road and took off in a 2016 Nissan SUV that was left running. Aerial footage by WGN -TV show officers surrounding the silver Nissan and opening the doors but the suspect was able to drive away.
He headed east on Irving Park, and one of the police cars chasing him collided with a black Ford Explorer traveling north on Ashland Avenue. The driver, a 37-year-old woman, was taken to Illinois Masonic Hospital and pronounced dead.
The police car then hit the white Hummer. The driver, 62, and two women with him, 29 and 44, were taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in fair condition.
Police said the marked squad car's emergency lights and siren were operating.
The WGN footage shows the Nissan heading south on Outer Lake Shore Drive toward downtown. The suspect appeared to zigzag south of downtown before driving on train tracks. He crashed the SUV near Pershing Road and Morgan Street.
A helicopter hovered above the scene Wednesday night on Pershing as Chicago police and state police cars stretched down the street. Shortly after 10 p.m., after trying to run from police through a giant enclosed lot, the suspect was taken into custody.
No details were released about the homicide and shootings he was wanted for.
Early Thursday morning, Irving Park Road bordering Lake View High School was taped off. A police car was destroyed, its hood crushed and the driver's side door hanging off. Debris spread across the street. A Ford Explorer and a Hummer, also heavily damaged, stood near Ashland.
Two SUVs that had collided blocked the exit ramp of the Kennedy Expressway near North Keystone Avenue.
Chicago police officers must follow a "balancing test" when deciding whether to give chase, pursuing only those wanted for a serious crime _ such as murder, armed robbery or kidnapping _ while weighing other risk factors such as traffic volume and road conditions.
