Driver critically injured after fleeing officers, vehicle flips on Richmond Avenue

HOUSTON – A man suffered major injuries late Saturday after officers say he restarted his vehicle and fled from a traffic hazard at the intersection of Fondren Road and Richmond Avenue, then struck a tree and rolled several blocks away.

Houston Police Department night-shift officers were dispatched about 11:30 p.m. to reports of a disabled vehicle blocking the intersection, HPD said. Responding officers found a single occupant asleep behind the wheel. As they attempted to open the driver’s side door, police said the man resisted and scuffled with officers.

Officers reported smelling alcohol at the scene and temporarily disabled the car’s push-button ignition. Police said the driver then restarted the vehicle, shifted into gear and accelerated away. Within seconds and after traveling a few hundred feet, the car collided with a large oak tree in the 9200 block of Richmond Avenue and rolled over.

The driver, the only person in the vehicle, was rushed to Ben Taub Hospital with serious injuries. No officers were hurt.

Investigators said speed was a factor in the crash and that alcohol remains under investigation. They are also trying to determine whether officers had a hold of the door when the vehicle left the scene.

Debris from the crash included multiple California voter registration forms; authorities said they do not yet know why those documents were in the car. HPD officials said the case could result in driving-while-intoxicated charges and that the Harris County District Attorney’s Office will be contacted for review.