A man has been charged following a police chase that began with a tip in Batavia, Illinois, and ended in a crash in Chicago overnight Monday.
The Kane County Sheriff’s Office said shortly before 1 a.m., officers received a tip about a gray Infiniti with no license plate speeding south on Washington Street at Fabyan Parkway. The tipster also informed police that the people in the car were wearing ski masks.
The sheriff’s office stated that their deputies attempted to conduct a traffic stop at Church and Bilter roads in Aurora, but the vehicle fled west onto Indian Trail, then onto Orchard Road, and finally onto the Ronald Reagan Memorial Tollway (I-88).
The Kane County Sheriff’s Office said Downers Grove police were able to spike the Infinity as it drove east on I-88, but it continued to flee along the Kennedy Expressway until it collided with a car near Central Park and Roosevelt Road in Chicago’s Homan Square neighborhood.
It continued for another mile until police caught up with the driver.
The driver of the Infiniti was taken into custody. He has been identified as 19-year-old Milton Boni, and he is facing multiple charges in connection with the crash, including speeding, property damage, causing bodily harm, and concealing or altering a vehicle’s license plate.
Kane County officials said two passengers in the car, including a minor, were identified and could face pending charges. Following the crash, they were taken to Mt. Sinai Hospital for medical examination and released shortly thereafter.
One person in the other car, unrelated to the chase, was injured but is expected to recover.
Professor David Harris of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, who specializes in search and seizure law and police issues, says these types of police chases are becoming less common as departments rewrite their policies to reduce risks.
“I just think, you know, nationally, the trend is clearly towards restricting high-speed chases to the situations where they are really necessary,” he told me. “Most jurisdictions are moving in that direction simply because of the danger to the public, the officer, and even the people in the fleeing vehicle. Whatever it is, it must be worth taking those risks to stage a high-speed chase.”
According to Harris, police should only engage in such pursuits when “something other than a traffic violation is at stake.”
CBS News Chicago also questioned Harris about the charges.
“There is no evidence in the report that the vehicle was stolen. “There is no indication that the people in the vehicle were engaged in some kind of dangerous felony activity,” Harris said, “only that the police tried to pull them over and they refused to cooperate.”
CBS News Chicago contacted the Kane County Sheriff’s Department to inquire about their police pursuit policies, but have yet to hear back.
