A suspect is in custody Sunday after leading Los Angeles Sheriff’s deputies on a 90-minute slow-speed chase through Lomita that ended with a standoff at the intersection of Vermont Avenue and West Anaheim Street in Wilmington.
It began at about 7 p.m. on 259th Place in Lomita with a call about a person acting erratically, but deputies later determined the vehicle, a black Honda Civic, was believed stolen. The man drove away when deputies arrived, according to Lt. M. Nyberg of the Lomita Sheriff’s Station.
The pursuit wound through Lomita, then Wilmington and “at one point, the suspect rammed patrol cars, which was assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer,” Nyberg said.
Deputies attempted numerous PIT maneuvers designed to spin the car and make it stall but the suspect was driving at a very low speed, which appeared to keep the car from stalling so the suspect kept driving away, he said.
Spike strips flattened the two front tires but that didn’t stop the man from driving the car at speeds between around 10 and 30 mph, as shown on television video. The suspect moved slowly enough to maneuver around more spike strips.
Witnesses said the suspect was gesturing with his hands and throwing objects out of his window throughout the pursuit.
After roughly 45 minutes, the driver picked up speed and drove through a main street in Wilmington, even going into the lanes in the opposite direction.
The suspect finally stopped around 8:30 p.m. on Vermont Avenue and Anaheim Street near Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park in Harbor City.
Deputies boxed in the vehicle to prevent the driver from fleeing and were in a standoff with the suspect, who was not obeying orders and refused to exit the vehicle.
The suspect was ordered to get out of the car 15 to 20 minutes before deputies finally pulled him out of the vehicle, Nyberg said.
The suspect was taken to a hospital to determine whether he was driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, while he faced charges including assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, grand theft auto and felony evading, the lieutenant said.