Another high speed chase in Cleveland started by an outside police department

A violent high-speed chase in Cleveland overnight has one city councilman once again demanding changes.

Ward Eight Councilman Michael Polensek has railed against outside police departments who continue pursuits in Cleveland city limits for years.

Early Friday morning state troopers chased a vehicle down I-90 westbound, onto I-77, to I-490, terminating with a crash into another vehicle on E. 55th Street. The driver of that vehicle was injured and hospitalized.

And on Monday night, Garfield Heights police officers, chasing a vehicle that was speeding, crashed into multiple cars on E. 93rd St. in Cleveland.

“We’ve been very lucky that no innocent person or family has been killed,” Polensek said.

The city’s own officers must follow a strict chase policy, which only allows pursuits in cases of violent felonies and OVI’s. They cannot exceed 35 miles per hour and they cannot leave city limits.

But the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s policy is broader. It allows car chases, "When the necessity of the apprehension outweighs the level of danger created by the pursuit.”

Polensek wants a uniform rule.

"We can’t control what they do," he said, referring to correspondence with the city’s safety director and police chief, replying, "You’re in our city! Don’t tell me you can’t control what they do!"