PIERCE TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Three people were taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center — one by AirCare — after a driver crashed a stolen vehicle in Pierce Township, according to police.
Police said that shortly after 2 a.m. Thursday morning, a Pierce Township officer got a notification from a Flock camera in the township reporting a stolen vehicle in the area of Nine Mile Road and SR-125.
The officer spotted the vehicle, which was stolen out of Hamilton County, on Nine Mile Road near Davis Road, police said. When the officer activated his lights and attempted a traffic stop, however, the driver sped away, driving erratically, according to police.
The officer did not pursue, because the township's pursuit policy only allows a chase if the suspect is accused of a violent felony; However, the officer found the vehicle crashed a short time later, according to police.
The vehicle was found on Bradbury Road, just east of Nine Mile, police said. The driver had crashed through a guard rail and into a wooded area; the officer said he could hear people running in the woods away from the vehicle.
However, a 17-year-old passenger was still trapped inside the crashed vehicle, police said.
The teen had "significant injuries" and was taken to UCMC via AirCare.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol responded to help with the investigation and deployed an aviation unit to search the woods near the crash for any other people involved. No one was found.
At around 7:30 a.m., a passerby reported seeing two people walking along the road, covered in mud and with visible injuries. Police responded and determined both people were connected to the stolen vehicle; they were also taken to UCMC to be treated for their injuries. Police did not release the ages or identity of those two people, nor did they say whether anyone will be charged with a crime.
Police said all three people have "non-life-threatening injuries."
