CLEVELAND — For the third time in less than three months, a Parma police pursuit crosses into Cleveland. The Old Brooklyn neighborhood is again taking the brunt of the aftermath.
We don’t just report the initial story—we follow through to its conclusion. Read and watch our previous reporting on this story below and see more stories that we've followed through on here.
A 70-year-old man was hurt in the crash Thursday night.
Cleveland police said a 33-year-old man driving the suspect car was hurt along with his 40-year-old passenger.
A source shared surveillance video of the t-bone crash on Pearl at Altoona Roads.
The wreck was bad enough that a man had to be cut out.
“It’s just devastating to hear that happened to someone else,” Esenje Goodman said.
News 5 Investigators brought you Goodman’s survival story from her hospital room in August.
Goodman thought she was going to die when she was hit head-on by a wrong-way driver on 176. Two men died in that crash.
Parma was chasing the other car moments before.
But Parma police said its officer lost sight of it and terminated the pursuit.
“It’s just not worth it to anyone else that sees it from the outside,” Goodman said.
Goodman’s dog died in the crash. She still can’t walk but says she is making progress.
“It sucks I’m not going to have the same teeth again, or my ankles will never be the same; that doesn’t hurt as much as not being able to see my dog,” Goodman said.
Parma Police hasn’t responded to News 5 requests for information about Thursday’s chase and crash on Pearl Road.
People in Old Brooklyn are frustrated and want answers.
“Yeah, this is disheartening; we have people walking up and down these sidewalks all the time; it doesn’t take much. You can see we’re five feet from the street,” Carl Schanz said.
Schanz is a longtime property owner on the heavily traveled State Road.
“Somehow, the cities have to work together on a plan and look to stop that kind of problem going on; we can’t have that,” Schanz said.
The crash with Goodman and one just days earlier prompted Cleveland to ask Parma for a meeting.
Cleveland said Safety Directors from both cities had talks and continue to evaluate all options to keep people and property safe.
“I just feel like when you weigh those two things, catching the guy right now or changing someone’s life as police, they should be choosing to save the others around instead of just chasing like that,” Goodman said.
In a statement, the city of Cleveland said every jurisdiction operates by its own policies and procedures.
Following those established standards, Parma is in charge of its handling of their involvement in this incident.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Goodman with medical expenses and dental work if you'd like to help.
