1 Killed, 5 Injured In Crash After South Side Police Chase
Updated 08/25/15 - 11:08 a.m.
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A 66-year-old man was killed, and five people were injured Monday evening, in a crash following a police chase in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood.
Police said officers pulled over a Pontiac Bonneville for a routine traffic stop around 7:30 p.m. in the 7500 block of South Saint Lawrence Avenue. The 26-year-old man behind the wheel allegedly sped away after the officers got out of their squad car.
As police gave chase, the Bonneville struck a Subaru in the intersection of 75th Street and King Drive, and then hit 66-year-old Willie Owens, who was changing the battery in his pickup truck. The impact pushed the pickup into a Chevrolet Cruze in front of it.
"By the time he looked around, the car that they was chasing was right up on him, and smashed him," said Owens' nephew, Lars Johnson.
Carl Hill walked up on the scene, and said he knew right away it was bad.
"It was just an ugly scene out here. It was real ugly," he said. "His shoe was knocked off, and the guy was just real gruesome."
Owens was taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, where he was pronounced dead.
Relatives said Owens was a retired mechanic, who had lived in the neighborhood for 15 years, and always was the first person to help others.
"A lot of people around here know him. He was a good family member. He was a good father. He was the best," Johnson said.
Two women who were in the Subaru were taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. An 80-year-old woman was listed in serious condition, and the other woman's condition was stabilized.
Two other women who were in the Chevy were taken to Jackson Park Hospital, where they were treated and released.
The driver of the Bonneville was taken to Saint Bernard Hospital, where he was treated and released into police custody. Charges were pending Tuesday morning.