Fort Worth police chase video shows suspected drunken driver hit car, 2 pedestrians
FORT WORTH, Texas - Two people are still in Fort Worth hospitals after being hit by a suspected drunken driver who was running from police while they were walking in the Fort Worth Entertainment District on Saturday night.
29-year-old Andrew Michael Guerra is facing charges after allegedly hitting another vehicle and the pedestrians while trying to get away.
Police do not yet have the results of a blood alcohol test taken at the hospital.
Fort Worth PD Sergeant Jason Spencer said the Fort Worth officers did what the public expects them to do.
"When they see a driver that appears to pose a danger to the public they try and get that person off the road," he said.
Fort Worth police say they first spotted a gray pickup truck with no headlights driving the wrong way down a one-way street shortly after 10 p.m.
"The truck eventually figured that out, backed up and almost struck the parked police car," said Spencer.
When the driver took off, cops lit him up, and the chase was on.
Guerra took off at high speeds through the busy West 7th Entertainment District through a parking lot at a high speed, then the wrong way down Fox Street and onto West 7th at speeds touching 75 miles per hour. Along the way, he struck curbs and just missed other vehicles.
The pick-up popped over a curb into a bank parking lot and hit a pole, blowing out his left front tire.
Suspected drunk driver hit 2 pedestrians during police chase, Fort Worth police say
A 29-year-old driver accused of hitting two pedestrians after leading Fort Worth police on a chase Saturday night is now in custody.
"That did not stop the driver who kept driving back westbound on West 7th Street, basically on the rims, and eventually drove right through the intersection at University and West 7th," said Sgt. Spencer. "He had to drive around stopped traffic, struck a traffic sign pole and went through the intersection and then struck a car and two pedestrians who were crossing the street on the far side of the intersection."
A man and woman were taken to hospitals with serious injuries.
Police were able to arrest Guerra, who lives in Grand Prairie, after the crash.
Police said Guerra had to be extracted from the vehicle. While police suspect he was intoxicated, he refused a field sobriety test.
Guerra was charged with intoxication assault with a vehicle, evading arrest with a vehicle causing serious bodily injury and unlawful restraint. Police said he had a passenger who tried to get out of the truck during the chase, but Guerra allegedly would not let him.
He is currently in the Tarrant County Jail, held on $95,000 bond.
This incident comes less than a week after the Fort Worth City Council voted to approve a lawsuit against the Texas Attorney General’s Office in an effort to prevent the release of its pursuit policy as requested by some media outlets.
"As you all know, our pursuit policy is currently the subject of some litigation. I'm going to be very careful about getting into too much detail about that," Spencer said. "However, what I can tell you is our pursuit policy looks at the danger that a driver may pose to the public based on a number of factors and that our officers always have to weigh whether letting a person escape would pose a greater danger to the public than attempting to apprehend them."
Criminologist Alex Del Carmen with Tarleton State University says it’s common practice for departments to release pursuit policy. He gives a take on why the department might withhold it.
"You don’t release it because you don’t want the bad guys to know what the rules of engagement are for the police department," he said. "However, in the past probably five to seven years, we’ve seen a, if you want to call it, a convergence where police departments across the nation have begun to release the policy."
Sgt. Spencer says the chain of command is reviewing what possibly went right or wrong during the chase.
"Officers did a great job of keeping everyone updated on where they were and the conditions of the pursuit," he said.
There could be more issues for someone other than the driver.
Police are looking into where Guerra was before 10 p.m. Saturday.
Bartender arrested for allegedly over-serving drunk driver who killed Euless officer
Bartender Cala Richardson was charged with a misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail and a $4,000 fine for allegedly over-serving a man who hit and killed Euless detective Alex Cervantes.
If bars, clubs or restaurants overserved him, the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission will open its own investigation.