Criminal car crashes spur Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn to announce surge in traffic enforcement
After two weekend crashes involving a stolen vehicle and another used in an armed robbery injured multiple people, Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn announced Monday "a surge" in traffic enforcement that will extend to the end of the year.
The stepped-up enforcement will focus on police district "hot spots" where violent crime correlates with a high volume of traffic violations. Officers will target dangerous driver behavior, such as speeding, driving recklessly, running red lights and passing on the right, Flynn said.
"We'll do what needs to be done to do our best to take control of this situation," Flynn said at news conference at N. 27th and W. Fond du Lac Ave.
After the end of the year, the police department will evaluate the surge, including the disposition of citations, arrests and charges, along with the number of crashes, injuries and fatalities, he said.
As of Oct. 2, the city had recorded 47 traffic deaths, compared with 57 in all of 2016 and 64 in 2015, according to police data.
There have also been about 400 crash injuries this year — about the same as the number of non-fatal shootings in the city during 2017, Flynn said.
Two Milwaukee police officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries Sunday in a crash caused by two armed robbery suspects at N. 27th and W. Burleigh streets.
A vehicle chase involving the suspects being pursued by the victims of the robbery ended when the driver of the suspects' vehicle struck another vehicle, which then struck a Milwaukee police squad stopped at a red light, police said.
The driver of the suspects' vehicle fled on foot and police arrested a 20-year-old man in the vehicle who is on probation for robbery.
The officers were treated at a hospital and released, police said.
On Saturday night, a 16-year-old driving a stolen SUV was racing on W. Hampton Ave. near N. 34th St. when he lost control, crossed the median into oncoming traffic and collided with the three other vehicles, police said.
The teen driver ran away from the crash and was later arrested, police said.
A 17-year-old boy in the vehicle remained in critical condition Monday and three girls in the SUV suffered serious injuries, police said.
The people inside one of the other vehicles involved also suffered injuries and were hospitalized, police said.
The stolen SUV, a 2017 Mazda CX-5 crossover-style vehicle, was taken the night before during a burglary of Russ Darrow Mazda of Milwaukee, 11330 W. Metro Blvd.
The teen faces a slew of felony charges, and police expect to refer the case to prosecutors this week.
He has a previous record for operating a vehicle without the owner's consent and burglary.
The 17-year-old also has a record for auto theft, the chief said.
Acting Milwaukee County Sheriff Richard Schmidt applauded Flynn's announcement, saying he is "extremely supportive of the initiative."
"Multiple agencies working for the mutual outcome of enhanced public safety through reducing reckless driving is a force multiplier," Schmidt said in a statement.
Flynn's announcement comes less than two weeks after some of Flynn's top commanders were grilled by a Common Council committee about traffic enforcement and received a petition signed by hundreds of city residents calling for action on the issue.
At that meeting, Assistant Chief James Harpole detailed how the department uses data to focus on traffic and violent crime hot spots that often overlap in the same areas. Each police district has a team focused on local spots of concern.
"We are reacting to that data today," Flynn said Monday, flanked by Mayor Tom Barrett and standing in front of about 50 officers, including about 30 motorcycle officers.
One key stretch is Capitol Drive at the intersections of Sherman Blvd. and N. 51st and 43rd streets, he said.
“We have placed a significant amount of our resources in those neighborhoods where those crashes are most prevalent,” Harpole said.
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The weekend crashes are the latest in a string of high-profile cases. In the first week of October, two drivers ignored red lights, killing two adults and a baby.
