Police: Reckless drivers of stolen cars pose danger to public, law enforcement
A local police department continues to be overwhelmed with reports of stolen cars.
One organization has ranked Dayton first on the list of cities with the highest number of stolen cars per capita.
Police are warning the public as many drivers caught in stolen cars often drive recklessly and refuse to stop.
In some cases, this has led to innocent people being injured.
Monday afternoon a 56-year-old man was seriously injured after being hit by a reported stolen Compunet Clinical Laboratories car.
>> Man seriously injured after being hit by stolen vehicle in Dayton; 1 taken into custody
" It’s a big danger to the public because they don’t have the driving skills that an experienced driver has and when they flee from police and under stress, they make bad decisions because they don’t have the decision-making skills or the driving skills necessary to drive at high speeds,” Lt. Randy Beane with Dayton Police Department said.
Dash camera footage obtained by News Center 7 shows that some drivers don’t mind hitting police cars too.
On March 25, a Dayton police officer spotted a car reported stolen from North Main Street.
They spotted the driver in a neighborhood where she briefly stopped but then backed up into a cruiser.
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As officers closed in, the driver pulled forward again and reversed a higher speed and again hit the cruiser.
Officers arrested 31-year-old Kristen Camden.
The rise in car thefts has led to the formation of the Grant Theft Auto Suppression Task Force.
The task force is made up of agencies from across Montgomery County and conducts sweeps to find stolen vehicles and make arrests.
