By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY
Salina Post
A 12-year-old boy allegedly took a car and police on a tour of parts of southwest and central Salina early Saturday morning, sometimes at speeds up to 60 mph.
At approximately 2:30 a.m. Saturday, an officer observed a 2013 black Altima traveling at a high rate of speed near the intersection of Apache Drive/Arapahoe Avenue, Salina Police Captain Paul Forrester said this morning. The officer attempted to stop the car, but it kept going.
The officer caught up with the car near the intersection of Pontiac Avenue and W. Republic Avenue, where the driver activated the left-turn signal and then turned right onto Pontiac Avenue. When the officer again attempted to stop the car, it accelerated and drove all over southwest Salina and into central Salina, Forrester said.
The car eventually ended up on E. Minneapolis, where it encountered the dead end at the large drainage ditch. The car then drove on the grass along the ditch between E. Minneapolis Avenue and E. Beloit Avenue, where it attempted to drive around the guardrail at E. Beloit Avenue and hit a fence, Forrester said.
At that point, the officer exited the patrol vehicle. The driver then put the Altima in reverse, striking the patrol vehicle and causing minor damage. The Altima then fled southbound on Osborne Street and drove around central Salina, eventually ending up on S. 10th Street. Forrester said the Altima, which was southbound on S. 10th Street, unsuccessfully attempted to turn eastbound on W. Republic Avenue and struck a tree at 319 W. Republic Avenue.
The 12-year-old driver was arrested and then transported by EMS to Salina Regional Health Center with unspecified injuries. He later was released to his mother, Forrester said.
The car, which belonged to the mother's husband, was disabled in the crash and towed from the scene, Forrester said.
The boy faces the following requested charges, according to Forrester.
●Felony flee and elude
●No proof of insurance
●Reckless driving
●Speeding
●Two counts of improper driving on landed roadways
●20 counts of failure to yield at stop signs and yield signs
●26 counts of improper use of a turn signal
●Disobeying a traffic control device
●No seatbelt
●No valid driver's license