Sheriff, chief deputy chase DUI suspect through Downtown
Monday was Allegheny County Sheriff William P. Mullen’s first day back to work after knee surgery, and he and his chief deputy were headed to a noon meeting to talk about a program that collects Christmas presents for children in need.
As they waited to drive through the intersection at Fifth and Sixth avenues behind BNY Mellon Center, they saw a suspected impaired driver speed by.
Chief Deputy Kevin Kraus was behind the wheel when he spotted the car with a crumpled-up hood. He suspected it had just been in a crash.
Sheriff Mullen got on the radio and called for sheriff’s cars, he said, and Chief Deputy Kraus then called for city police to respond. They pursued the vehicle through Downtown as it ran several red lights and stop signs.
“He, literally, almost ran someone over in the crosswalk,” Chief Deputy Kraus said.
The pedestrian jumped out of the way to safety.
As the chase continued outbound on Bigelow Boulevard, Chief Deputy Kraus and Sheriff Mullen — using lights and a siren built into their unmarked vehicle — were joined by marked cars from the city’s Hill District station and sheriff’s cars.
A tractor-trailer heading up
the hill saw officers pursuing the car and stopped, blocking both lanes so the suspect’s vehicle was boxed in.
“He was pinched in with nowhere to go,” Chief Deputy Kraus said.
There was a bottle of tequila in the car, Sheriff Mullen said.
Chief Deputy Kraus added that the suspect — identified as James F. Little Jr., 36 — reeked of alcohol.
A preliminary measure from a breath test indicated that Mr. Little’s blood-alcohol content was 0.37, or nearly five times the legal limit for driving of 0.08, the chief said.
“He was so drunk, who knows what else would have happened,” Sheriff Mullen said. “He could have killed somebody as fast as he was driving.”
He was taken into custody by other sheriff’s deputies on the scene and multiple charges were filed, including reckless driving, aggravated assault by vehicle while DUI, and driving with a suspended or revoked license. A passenger in the car, Alvin Briskey Jr., 29, was released.
After Mr. Little stopped the car, the sheriff said he limped to the passenger side.
“I felt kind of awkward because I couldn’t have chased him 10 feet,” Sheriff Mullen said.
Chief Deputy Kraus said police believe the vehicle struck had just struck another car in traffic on Sixth Avenue near Bigelow Square.
The woman driving that vehicle was treated by medics on the scene for a head injury.