Woman In Stolen Car Chase, Allegedly Rams Patrol Car, Then Chills

LOS ANGELES, CA — A woman led officers on a half-hour chase in a stolen vehicle Thursday, struck a patrol vehicle and injured an officer before she was arrested in Van Nuys, police said.

The chase began about 2:15 a.m. in the area of Nordhoff Street and Sepulveda Boulevard when officers attempted to stop the woman on suspicion that she was driving a stolen vehicle.

During the chase, she came to a sudden stop and, as officers were exiting their vehicle, she backed up at a high speed and crashed into the patrol car, said Sgt. Ron Fisher of the Los Angeles Police Department's Van Nuys Division.

The officer was taken to a hospital for treatment and was later released, police said.

The woman eventually stopped in the area of Haskell Avenue and Vanowen Street. She stuck herself outside the sunroof and was smoking a cigarette, refusing to comply with officers' demands, before she was forced out of the vehicle and taken into custody, police said.

City News Service