Trio arrested after brief police pursue in Decatur – Wandtv.com, NewsCenter17, StormCenter17, Central Illinois News-
DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) – The Decatur Police Department says three fellows have been arrested after leading officers on a brief pursue through residential neighborhoods Wednesday evening.
Decatur police say officers attempted to pull over a Nissan Maxima in the one thousand four hundred block of North Edward Street at about 7:52 p.m. after receiving a report that the occupants may have been in possession of handguns and managed substances. However, officers say the Nissan did not stop, and a pursuit ensued.
Decatur police say the Nissan ran five stop signs during the course of the pursue, and that one of the officers involved witnessed a handgun get thrown from the rear passenger side of the vehicle in the six hundred block of West Division. The gun was instantly recovered by other officers responding to the incident. Police also say the pursue went through several “very populated neighborhoods,” with several children outside during the pursuit.
Officers say the vehicle pursue ended when the Nissan ran into a tree. Police say officers found the vehicle unoccupied at the crash scene, and that a man, identified as Jurney Ewing, 22, was attempting to come in a home in the one thousand five hundred block of North University. Ewing was taken into custody, and police say he had possession of the Nissan’s keys at that time. Officers learned that a four-year-old child was taken to the home by Ewing, and that two other boys, identified as Kenneth White and Devante Hall, 22, were in the area and also taken into custody.
During an interview at the Decatur Police Department, detectives say Ewing admitted that he, the four-year-old, White, and Hall were traveling in the Nissan, and that he was driving before the attempted traffic stop. According to police sworn statements, Ewing also told detectives that Hall took over driving the car after pulling over on the side of the road during the pursue, and that the gun was thrown from the car by White. Police also say Ewing admitted to smoking marijuana earlier in the day, after officers noticed the smell of burnt marijuana.
Police also spoke with the four-year-old, who said that Ewing was driving the car. Additionally, police say they did not find a car seat in the Nissan, which suggests the child was not decently restrained during the pursue.
Ewing is facing preliminary charges of aggravated DUI, unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, and endangering the life/health of a child. Hall is facing preliminary charges of aggravated fleeing/eluding and endangering the life/health of a child, and White is facing a preliminary charge of possession of a weapon by a felon.
The investigation into this incident is ongoing.