One dead after wild police car chase

A wild 15-minute police car chase of a suspect that criss-crossed the city Friday night ended with an accident that killed a man and injured a woman and a 4-year-old boy.

At 9:54 p.m., a 25th District officer reported that he was in pursuit of a man driving a silver 2001 Volkwagon because the man had pointed a gun at the officer.

Depending on the crime, police car chases are often terminated quickly by supervisors because of the risk of accidents and bystanders getting hurt.

When engaging in a pursuit officers are required to immediately notify police radio the reason for the chase, their direction, speed, and the condition of the roadway. A supervisor then monitors the pursuit, deciding whether or not it should continue.

It was not immediately clear if police policy allowed this chase to go on because the officer had been threatened with a gun.

What followed was a pursuit overseen by a police helicopter pilot giving units turn-by-turn updates on where the suspect was.

The chase started around on Route 1 around Broad Street and reached Kelly Drive before returning east into the city, through a La Salle University parking lot, and then down into North Philadelphia.

At one point the helicopter pilot declared: "This is amazing."

The Volkwagon crashed at 10th and Ontario Streets at 10:09 p.m. TV news helicopter images showed three vehicles tangled up. The suspect tried to run but was captured in the 900 block of Russell Street.

One of the vehicles carried a man, woman and a 4-year-old boy, who was rushed to St Christopher's Hospital for Children and was reported in stable condition.

The man died. The 30-year-old woman was taken to an area hospital.

Police initially believed the adults were the parents of the boy.