17-year-old Cleveland boy faces criminal charges for Euclid police chase ending in fatal crash
By: A Euclid stolen car chase ending in a fatal crash Sunday has led to the arrest of a 17-year-old Cleveland boy, who now faces criminal charges for the death of a 44-year-old mother, according to police.
Euclid police said they were initially alert of the stolen car, a 2023 Jeep, through a recently installed network of FLOCK license plate reading cameras.
The cameras alerted police that the car was in the area of North Lakeland Boulevard and East 222nd Street in Euclid.
Euclid police said an officer responded to the area around 3 p.m. and confirmed the Jeep was stolen from Cleveland.
According to police, file information showed that the occupants of the stolen car may be armed.
The officer turned on his cruiser's overhead lights and siren to start a traffic stop, but the driver refused, instead fleeing from police.
The pursuit, according to police, only involved one Euclid police cruiser.
Police said the entire chase lasted under three minutes, and ended with a fatal crash at the intersection of E. 156th Street and Calcutta Avenue.
The two suspects fled from the car at the scene of the crash.
Cleveland City Councilman Michael Polensek said the victim, an innocent bystander in her car at the time of the crash, died on the scene.
Officials identified her as Michelle Wall, 44, of Cleveland.
Euclid police said they found and arrested the two in a nearby backyard, identifying the driver as an unlicensed 17-year-old boy out of Cleveland.
According to police, both suspects were taken to a nearby hospital for a precautionary evaluation, and a gun was later found in the stolen Jeep.
The car was stolen out of Cleveland on March 15 around 2:18 a.m., with Cleveland police reports stating that two women were carjacked by around 10 young men, several of whom were armed.
The victims had made a wrong turn, according to police, and were trying to turn around when two other cars blocked their path.
They were surrounded by a group of armed suspects, one of which held a gun to the driver’s head as they stole the car and other personal items.
Once released from the hospital, the suspect driver was taken to the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Detention facility.
Police said he will be criminally charged with the death of Michelle Wall.