Man crashes into retention pond after police chase

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - A police pursuit ended with the fleeing car in a retention pond and a passenger, who said she was unconscious during the chase, screaming for help as the driver tried to run away, according to police reports.

According to the police report, an officer ran a license plate number at the intersection of State Boulevard and Reed Road around 12:33 a.m. Sunday and saw the driver of the vehicle had a suspended license.

Police said the driver of the SUV, Jason Harrison, 32, of Fort Wayne, began speeding up, trying to avoid the police officer. The officer attempted to pull over Harrison and a chase ensued.

According to police, Harrison ran a red light going 80 miles-per-hour at the intersection of Reed Road and Lake Avenue. The officer was advised to call off the pursuit but then noticed Harrison was traveling towards a dead end.

"It was 12:30, very little vehicular traffic, and likely no pedestrian traffic whatsoever, so it was elected at that time to continue with the pursuit," said Raquel Foster of the Fort Wayne Police Department.

Police said Harrison drove through a cornfield off the east side of Reed Road and finally crashed his SUV into an iced over retention pond.

Harrison got out of the car, which was in four feet of water, and waded through the water then fled on foot. Police apprehended him a short time later.

"A car was in the pond, and the guy was trying to get out of the ice, but it kept breaking," said Leesa Enright, a neighbor who witnessed the crash. "Every time he’d push himself up, it would break. Finally he got up and was running across the pond with his arms up, and all the police officers are yelling stop...it's just crazy because it’s quiet back here. We’ve never had anything like this, most people don’t even know this pond exists."

According to the police report, officers heard a woman yelling for help inside of the SUV. Police said the passenger crawled onto the roof of the submerged SUV and fire crews helped bring her to shore.

The woman told police she did not know Harrison and that they had met at Wrigley Field Bar and Grill that night. She said she and he had four vodka drinks before leaving the bar.

The passenger said she was passed out in the passenger seat of the vehicle during the entire pursuit. She woke up to the cold water on her legs when the SUV crashed into the pond.

Harrison is facing the following charges:

• OWI, a felony
• OWI endangerment
• Resisting law enforcement, a felony
• Resisting law enforcement fleeing

According to the police report, Harrison refused to take a breathalyzer test after police arrested him.

This is Harrison's second OWI charge within the past five years, which makes it a felony charge.