Highway Patrol investigating crash involving responding officers
Steve Fogarty | The Chronicle-Telegram
ELYRIA — A three-car crash that involved an Elyria police cruiser heading to a robbery in progress at a local motel remains under investigation by the Elyria post of the Ohio Highway Patrol.
The patrol was asked by Elyria police to take over the investigation of the three-car crash, according to Elyria police Capt. Daniel Jaykel.
“We wanted to be as fair and impartial as possible, and felt this was the best decision to bring an outside agency in to investigate,’’ Jaykel said. “We didn’t want to show any type of favoritism to one of our own.”
Elyria police Officer Nicholas A. Eichenlaub, 26, was traveling north in his police cruiser with the car’s lights and sirens activated at 7:17 p.m. Tuesday when he struck the side of a vehicle driven by James E. Mahone, 42, of Elyria.
Mahone had stopped at the traffic light at Bell Avenue and state Route 57 and was struck as he drove into the intersection when the light turned green, according to Trooper Charles Jackson of the Elyria patrol post.
The impact spun Mahone’s vehicle, and it struck a LifeCare transport vehicle idling in the southbound lanes of Route 57, said Jackson, who is handling the investigation.
Mahone, who was taken to EMH Regional Medical Center with facial injuries, was released after treatment, according to a hospital representative.
Neither Eichenlaub, who is the son of Elyria Lt. Andy Eichenlaub, nor a second officer in the cruiser was hurt, Jaykel said.
“Both airbags deployed in the cruiser, and they had their seat belts on,” Jaykel said.
The driver of the LifeCare vehicle, Amber Bevins, 24, of Elyria, was not injured. The LifeCare vehicle, which had just dropped off a patient, sustained minor damage, Jackson said.
No charges have been filed.
“We’re still checking out some witnesses,” Jackson said. “I can’t speculate on any charges at this point, or who they might be filed against.”
State troopers will confer with the Lorain County Prosecutor’s Office once their investigation is complete, Jackson said.
The accident forced the temporary closing of the southbound lanes of Route 57 between Warden and Foster avenues, and narrowed traffic to one lane in the northbound lanes, Jackson said.
Police reopened the road to traffic about 8:45 p.m.
Contact Steve Fogarty at 329-7146 or sfogarty@chroniclet.com
Steve Fogarty | The Chronicle-Telegram
ELYRIA — A three-car crash that involved an Elyria police cruiser heading to a robbery in progress at a local motel remains under investigation by the Elyria post of the Ohio Highway Patrol.
The patrol was asked by Elyria police to take over the investigation of the three-car crash, according to Elyria police Capt. Daniel Jaykel.
“We wanted to be as fair and impartial as possible, and felt this was the best decision to bring an outside agency in to investigate,’’ Jaykel said. “We didn’t want to show any type of favoritism to one of our own.”
Elyria police Officer Nicholas A. Eichenlaub, 26, was traveling north in his police cruiser with the car’s lights and sirens activated at 7:17 p.m. Tuesday when he struck the side of a vehicle driven by James E. Mahone, 42, of Elyria.
Mahone had stopped at the traffic light at Bell Avenue and state Route 57 and was struck as he drove into the intersection when the light turned green, according to Trooper Charles Jackson of the Elyria patrol post.
The impact spun Mahone’s vehicle, and it struck a LifeCare transport vehicle idling in the southbound lanes of Route 57, said Jackson, who is handling the investigation.
Mahone, who was taken to EMH Regional Medical Center with facial injuries, was released after treatment, according to a hospital representative.
Neither Eichenlaub, who is the son of Elyria Lt. Andy Eichenlaub, nor a second officer in the cruiser was hurt, Jaykel said.
“Both airbags deployed in the cruiser, and they had their seat belts on,” Jaykel said.
The driver of the LifeCare vehicle, Amber Bevins, 24, of Elyria, was not injured. The LifeCare vehicle, which had just dropped off a patient, sustained minor damage, Jackson said.
No charges have been filed.
“We’re still checking out some witnesses,” Jackson said. “I can’t speculate on any charges at this point, or who they might be filed against.”
State troopers will confer with the Lorain County Prosecutor’s Office once their investigation is complete, Jackson said.
The accident forced the temporary closing of the southbound lanes of Route 57 between Warden and Foster avenues, and narrowed traffic to one lane in the northbound lanes, Jackson said.
Police reopened the road to traffic about 8:45 p.m.
Contact Steve Fogarty at 329-7146 or sfogarty@chroniclet.com
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