NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Officials on Tuesday announces that a man has been sentenced to five years in prison for fleeing police in a stolen car, speeding, and striking multiple vehicles in Brooklyn.
listen to 1010 wins
At about 1:15 a.m. on May 23, 2021, two police officers in an unmarked car received a radio call and turned on their vehicle’s lights and sirens that Justin Murrell, 20, was driving a 2021 Honda Accord that was reported stolen by a Valley Stream dealership eight days earlier.
Murrell was just ahead of the police car with three passengers in the vehicle and took off at a high rate of speed, running a steady red light, authorities said.
He then led police on a chase over several blocks, running another red light and driving on the sidewalk, striking two parked cars and a car that was stopped at a stop sign at the intersection of Wyona Street and Riverdale Avenue.
Other responding officers directed him to stop, but Murrell kept going.
Murrell then sped through another red light into oncoming traffic and crashed into two vehicles at New Lots and Georgia Avenues, causing both drivers to suffer minor injuries.
He finally stopped at the corner of New Lots and Van Sinderen Avenues, stumbled out of the Honda and attempted to flee but was apprehended a block away, on the corner of Junius Street.
Officers discovered that Murrell had no valid driver’s license, and the Honda had forged Alabama license plates.
The incident happened just over a year after the defendant Murrell was released from prison following an assault conviction that stemmed from dragging and seriously wounding an NYPD officer in another stolen car when he was 15.
“It is pure luck that more people were not injured or killed by this defendant’s reckless behavior, and he deserves every day of this prison sentence, especially because of his history of dangerous and destructive conduct. Serious charges and vigorous prosecution were important to protect the public from harm, and I hope that he will use his prison term to finally grow up and learn from his mistakes,” District Attorney Gonzalez said.
Murrell was sentenced to five years in prison after he pleaded guilty to second-degree assault in March.
Related
Related
