WYANDOTTE, Mich. – A speeding motorcyclist was taken down in Wyandotte as the result of a split-second decision that could have potentially saved lives.
“You know this person wasn’t only driving near 100 miles an hour fleeing from police, but he was also intoxicated,” Wyandotte Deputy Chief Archie Hamilton said.
Body camera footage from officers shows the tense moments before the takedown as officers chased the suspect.
“When they attempted to conduct a traffic stop, the motorcycle accelerated to almost a hundred miles an hour fleeing from the officers,” Hamilton said.
Officers had to decide to either call off the chase or stay on the motorcyclist.
“You’re traveling at sometimes over 100 miles-per-hour. A lot of the time, you don’t know who your pursuing. You don’t know why you’re pursuing them and you have to make a judgment call,” Hamilton said. “At some point, the cyclist attempted to turn around on Fort Street to go the opposite direction. As he slowed down, the officer positioned his police car where it actually forced him to come to a complete stop. Before he could navigate around the police car, the passenger officer jumped from the vehicle tackling him to the ground ... The end result is that they removed a dangerous driver from our roadways.”
The motorcyclist has been charged with operating while intoxicated and fleeing and eluding police.
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