Battle Creek Parole Absconder Crashes On Railroad Tracks
Calhoun County Sheriff’s Deputies were on patrol, at around 9 PM the evening of Sunday, November 27th, when something familiar caught their eye in the 500-block of Upton Avenue. In the parking lot of a local Springfield business was a vehicle that had fled from law enforcement earlier in the week. And another interesting fact, the driver was a 44-year-old Battle Creek man who was currently being sought for an active parole absconder warrant with the Michigan Department of Corrections. Instead of laying low and giving the known vehicle a rest from the streets of Battle Creek, the wanted absconder was now passing time in the parking lot, unaware that Calhoun County Sheriff’s Deputies were to shortly arrive and push his adrenaline secretion to a higher level.
As deputies approached the parked vehicle, the suspect weighed his options and chose to flee the scene, traveling southeast on Upton Avenue. The pursuit ended a couple of minutes later, about a mile and a half down the road, when the suspect crashed into a guardrail on Fountain Street, overturning and landing on the railroad tracks. He remained trapped in the vehicle as deputies called for an ambulance and fire personnel, and alerted dispatch to contact railroad authorities so that any trains in the area could be halted. It is probably at this time that the parole absconder had a “Come to Jesus” moment as he gazed down the tracks, hoping not to see the gleam of approaching lights.
When Battle Creek Firefighters arrived on the scene, they began the process of extricating the trapped driver by pealing back the roof from the badly damaged vehicle. Once freed from the mangled mess, he was transported by LifeCare Ambulance to the hospital, where he was examined and declared fit to be lodged in the Calhoun County Jail on an active parole absconder warrant, including charges of Fleeing and Eluding from police and Driving While License Suspended.