Suspected drunk leads chase from Torrance to Hawthorne, injures 3 in crash
By Josh Grossberg
Staff Writer
Three people -- including a
2-year-old child -- were taken to the hospital Saturday afternoon when a
suspected drunk driver crashed into them after a short police chase in
Torrance, police said.
The incident occurred at 3:30 p.m.
when a Torrance officer saw a car weaving in and out of traffic while heading
west on Redondo Beach Boulevard near Prairie Avenue.
When the car turned onto Prairie and
almost hit another vehicle, the officer turned on his lights and sirens, said
Torrance police Sgt. Steven Jenkinson.
Instead of pulling over, the car sped away at speeds of up to 80 mph, Jenkinsonj said.
When the four-door Nissan reached
Rosecrans Avenue about a mile away, it hit a two-door Toyota vehicle traveling
west through the Hawthorne intersection.
Three passengers of the Toyota
complained of unspecified pain and were taken to a hospital. Jenkinson did not
believe they had life-threatening injuries.
Police found open alcohol containers
in the Nissan and the driver was arrested on suspicion of driving under the
influence and for driving with a suspended license. John Tippins, 31, of Inglewood also had a warrant for DUI and for felony evading
arrest.
The intersection was closed for a short time.
josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com
Follow Josh Grossberg on Twitter at http://twitter.com/joshgrossberg
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About the Blogger
Larry Altman has covered crime in the South Bay since 1990. He's seen it all - the missing model who turned up dead in the desert, the wives found dead in trunks, the high-school coaches who get a little too close to their players. He drives his young colleagues nuts with his "I remember when" stories. He welcomes your tips and observations about the present, and you can mix in a little Lakers basketball talk if you like.
E-mail Larry at larry.altman@dailybreeze.com.
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Same guy from SaMoHi and Washington State???
I think this is the same John Tippins that played football for Santa Monica College and then Washington State. Too bad that free ride education didn't teach him any sense...
www.wsucougars.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/tippins_john00.html
Dont judge people from what u think u know because at the end of the day im sure to alot of people may think u dont have any sense either but only those that truly know u can be the judge of that. One bad decision does not define a person so keep that in mind before u go running ur mouth like everyone else does.
whoever this John Tippins is.....he almost caused the death of innocent people and a 2 year old baby...........if anyone drives under the influence......that is a rational decision that THEY made.....throw the book at him...he IS a real Jerk.
Nicole - Learn to use proper grammar, capitalization and punctuation before you lecture me on not having any sense while defending a felon. Continue to pay attention in your remedial classes at Santa Monica High and maybe you'll accomplish this before your 2nd time repeating the 10th grade. Tippins deserves jail time, and one can only hope he's dumb enough to commit another crime once he gets out so that the 3 Strikes Law will apply and subsequently keep him locked up for a long time. His SERIES of bad decisions certainly does define him just as your ignorance defines you. If you are confused by any of the big words I used above, I'm sure you can find a teacher or responsible adult to explain them to you.