Ann Arbor police officers injured in crash on way to shooting
An Ann Arbor Police Car rests next to the car it struck on Ellsworth Road as officers were on their way to a shooting incident Thursday afternoon.
Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com
- Related story: One person sent to U-M Hospital in critical condition with gunshot wound
- 6:38 p.m. update: Ann Arbor officers released from hospital after crash with minor injuries
Update: Ellsworth has been reopened between Research Park Drive and State Street, according to the Pittsfield Township Department of Public Safety. This story has also been updated to include more information about the injuries sustained in the accident.
Two Ann Arbor Police officers on their way to the scene of a shooting were injured when their car crashed into another car on Ellsworth Road near State Street in Ann Arbor Thursday afternoon.
The officers were headed west in their patrol car with lights and sirens operating when their car crashed into the left side of a car whose driver was trying to turn left into Zippy Auto Wash, 233 W. Ellsworth Road, said Ann Arbor Police Sgt. Paul Curtis.
Most drivers in the area had pulled to the side of the road to let police pass, but the woman apparently either didn’t hear or didn’t heed the sirens, he said.
"The (driver) didn't know they were coming," Curtis added.
The officers and the driver of the other car were all taken by ambulance to area hospitals. The driver had a head wound.
Both officers were also injured.
"They both blacked out for a second," Curtis said about the officers. One of the officers had an injured arm, leg and some head trauma.
The officers were trying to reach the scene of a shooting in the 700 block of North Maple Road that critically injured one person about 12:30 p.m.
Police blocked off Ellsworth Road between Research Park Drive and State Street for the crash investigation. It was closed from the time of the accident until 3:30 p.m., according to the Pittsfield Township Department of Safety.
Ann Arbor police officers investigate the crash of a patrol car and another vehicle Thursday afternoon on Ellsworth Road.
Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com
Comments
TRKR
Sat, May 19, 2012 : 2:16 a.m.
It is unfortunate that a community steeped in service to others fails to recognise the bravery of two officers responding to the shooting of a civilian (it had not yet been determined an accident by investigators). Perhaps the larger question should be why our community has allowed the disintegration and erosion of our elite Police and Fire Departments. Our Ann Arbor Police and Fire employees deserve our respect and appreciation. We wish all the best!
Tonya Lawrence
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 12:55 p.m.
And it's terribly pathetic and wrong that I seem to be the minority who knows what the laws state and that "taking responsibility" isn't expected from officers. they hold a high opion in my mind and a license that gives them authority to act in the highest reguard. so I expect them to fulfill their duties and not demolish reputations "for the publics safety again"
Tonya Lawrence
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 12:48 p.m.
Your all wrong. Police Persons duties at all time are to maintain public safety!!! Those are the laws. They uphold a higher license- No matter what the laws do and will state the officers are the guilty party
SEC Fan
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 2:40 p.m.
So if the police had "obeyed" the typical driving laws/rules (stopped at every light, stop sign; obeyed the speed limits, waited in traffic like everyone else) and people then died at the scene of the shooting to which they were responding, would they have then been upholding their duty to "maintain public safety"? The driver of the Toyota broke the law. The law is very clear, everyone must yield the right of way to all emergency vehicles (responding to emergencies). It is in no way ambiguous. Not only did the driver fail to yield, the driver's actions of not yielding resulted in the injuries to the emergency workers (police), which is a felony.
Local Lady
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 12:04 p.m.
The police officers are able to sue the driver in civil court for injuries if she was at fault. Courts will determine that.
paulczar
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 2:04 a.m.
I think neither party in this incident are completely without fault. Civilian motorist not paying attention, and police officers driving unnecessarily risky and aggressive. Glad no one was hurt.
paulczar
Wed, May 23, 2012 : 3:03 a.m.
SEC Fan: True, Good point. I guess I didnt realize they were responding to a shooting. I was trying to make a more general point that often police drive recklessly when their is no apparent emergency. I've seen cops roll through red lights like it was nothing, only to find them down the road at Subway. Cops still need to drive defensively when their sirens are on.
SEC Fan
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 2:35 p.m.
The police were responding to a shooting; at the time they wouldn't have known if lives were in imminent danger or not, but they would be (should be) assuming lives were in danger. If this doesn't warrant aggressive driving upon the part of the police, what violation of the law do you think warrants it?
racerx
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 1:03 a.m.
To all of those who will say we should be lucky to have such brave men and women protecting us spare me. This officer was on the south side of town around 1:00pm when the crash occurred, probably positioned to catch speeders. Another article about the accidental shooting on the west side of town was over with at 12:30pm. So. Why did the officers think that they could assist in any form from their geographic location? Was the newly formed county wide dispatcher not able to send officers who might had been closer? Regardless if those officers involved in the crash were "swat-trained"? And, if there were no injuries why were there three fire trucks on the scene? How many staff are on each truck, 3? 4? And, how far did those fire crews travel? Sorry, this is overkill. Was it ever communicated that the shooting at 12:30 was over by the time the accident occurred? Then how could this information not be communicated to these officers, in, oh lets say, a timely manner! For those who have lived in Ann Arbor long enough understand, our officers become very bored due to little major crime in the city. When something exciting occurs they tend to run on pure adrenaline and some really tend to over react.
Ron Granger
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 1:10 p.m.
racerx, rest assured that the police will thoroughly investigate themselves. I predict the usual outcome: The report will be secret, but the findings will surely be that they did nothing wrong, as usual. The woman will sue and we will pay her millions.
FUVM
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 1:45 a.m.
how many tickets have you gotten?
Ron Granger
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 11:32 p.m.
It will be interesting to learn how fast the city police car was traveling, apparently in the wrong direction of traffic, when they struck this innocent person, outside the city limits. The black box in the cruiser should reveal that. Please get the FOIA ready.
SEC Fan
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 2:29 p.m.
Emergency vehicles responding to an emergency don't legally have to obey the traffic rules; hence the addition of loud horns and flashy lights to warn people to get out of the way. Also why we have laws requiring all drivers to Yield the Right of Way to emergency vehicles.
Ron Granger
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 11:33 p.m.
And in car video? Won't there be in car video, since lights were on? Please FOIA that too.
Townie
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:38 p.m.
The accident scene was totally in Pittsfield Township so it's interesting to see the caption above on the picture 'Ann Arbor police officers investigate the crash...'. I don't think AA Police get to investigate this accident, do they? Shouldn't it be PPSD? A follow up by AA.com would be in order.
Carole
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:29 p.m.
Terribly sorry for all involved in this accident. However, having said that, there still are many drivers who do not slow down or even pull over when they hear sirens. Sirens blaring -- slow down, look about to see what's happening with other autos, and be alert to where the sirens are coming from, pull over, be safe for all.
Major
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:01 p.m.
Hope all are ok, especially the officers, we don't have many to spare, and this underscores that very problem, responding officers coming from way across town. Shame on city council/mayor for putting it's citizens at risk like this shame, shame, shame!
Local Lady
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 12:07 p.m.
Let's analyze this. The shooting according to the other article was around 12:30. This happened around 1pm. So exactly why were the officers on their way to the scene at high speed? They were not needed. So having fewer officers played no part in this. Besides there were 2 of them in the car. If we are so short of personnel, why were 2 in the car?
GoNavy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:37 p.m.
Short of officers? Heh. Maybe the officer who's always hanging out on Main Street across from Pioneer HS looking to catch people going 42 in a 35 could have gotten the call. How busy was he, really? Of course, in doing so, the AAPD would have pulled a valuable LEO off of "revenue duty."
annarboral
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:37 p.m.
I believe the location in question is in Pittsfield Township not the city. Police cars or any emergency vehicles must be very cautious when trying to rush to a site needing their attention. It is not unusual for an emergency vehicle to be very close to other vehicles before anyone is aware of their presence. They can't simply assume they will be noticed they must take precautions and be able to stop if someone clearly doesn't notice them. Hurrying for anything is frought with danger. In this case a bad situation was made much worse.
Ann English
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:20 p.m.
I understand the story saying that both the police car and the Toyota driver were traveling west on Ellsworth, and that the police car hit the driver's side of the Camry.
Ann English
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:01 p.m.
It sounds like the woman was trying to turn left from a TRAVEL lane, not a left-turn lane. If there isn't a left-turn lane in front of Zippy's, then she was trying to turn left from the FAR RIGHT lane. I wondered what was going on this afternoon, when I saw the long line of cars from the southern part of Research Park Drive NOT moving much at all as they waited to get onto the part that would take them to State Street. I turned around at a business, went back to the part that leads to Ellsworth, and there was a policeman refusing to allow me to turn right, in the direction of State Street. He only allowed me to turn left, so I circled around Stone School, Eisenhower, and State Street NORTH of I-94 to get to westbound I-94. There was a red helicopter flying around that accident area for ten minutes or more, and now I wonder if it was a police patrol helicopter. The other helicopters I see in that area don't fly sideways and stay within sight of a parking lot, like this one did.
Alex Nickodemus
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:04 p.m.
Bright red... that's probably Channel 4 news.
Outside(:-o)looking in
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:59 p.m.
When the police are trying to stop a speeding bullet, stay OUT of the way, you could get killed!
GoNavy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:35 p.m.
The calculus that goes into these high speed responses concerns me. While we don't have the details of the case, we know that at least two officers were injured and another motorist hurt in the process of responding to a totally unrelated incident. Many cities and municipalities have outlawed high-speed chases precisely for this reason. At what cost should a quick law enforcement response come? Law enforcement isn't the only entity on the road, and other drivers with less experience or training can often respond in a less-than-optimal fashion to what might otherwise be construed as straightforward signals. This might have been worse. The woman driving the Camry might have had a toddler buckled into the rear left seat. There might have been an elderly individual - blind, deaf, disabled, what have you - crossing the street without the ability or wherewithal to avoid what appears to have been an officer traveling solely with a sense of destination. If these officers could not avoid hitting a gigantic four-door sedan that was stopped in the road, what chance does an individual on foot have? This is a small, dense city with thousands of pedestrians. Some of these pedestrians are blind, some are deaf, and some are mentally blind and deaf by the simple fact that they aren't paying attention. However, their lives are no less valuable and are no less deserving of protection than anybody elses', and care should be taken to ensure that the average citizen, going about their lives, is not in danger from the less-than-optimal behavior of law enforcement. Regardless, while we all wax on about drivers' responsibilities regarding emergency vehicles, every motorist should remember what we're taught regarding rear-end collisions: It is your responsibility to remain 100% in control of your vehicle, at all times and under all conditions. This accident - by the mere fact that it occurred - indicates that the officers were not 100% in control of their vehicle at the time.
GoNavy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:14 p.m.
Bear- So let's be clear about what happens "normally" in a rear-end collision. You don't have to take my word; this is straight out of Michigan's code: 257.402 Rear end collision; prima facie evidence of negligence. (a) In any action, in any court in this state when it is shown by competent evidence, that a vehicle traveling in a certain direction, overtook and struck the rear end of another vehicle proceeding in the same direction, or lawfully standing upon any highway within this state, the driver or operator of such first mentioned vehicle shall be deemed prima facie guilty of negligence. This section shall apply, in appropriate cases, to the owner of such first mentioned vehicle and to the employer of its driver or operator. In case you missed it, "prima facie" means "at first appearance." In other words, "by the mere fact that it occurred." I can tell your head is about to explode right now, and that you cannot possibly comprehend being at fault for rear-ending another person "because they pull out in front of you" (by the way, that's not rear-ending, that's t-boning, unless you hit their rear end, in which case you rear-ended them). Others on this site have suggested that the driver may not have had much time to react - as little as 2-3 seconds. Regardless, I stand by my contention: That every life here in Ann Arbor deserves to be "served and protected," regardless of if that person shot themselves, or if that person is an innocent pedestrian or unwitting motorist.
Bear
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:54 p.m.
A lot of the same people would be complaining if response times WEREN'T quick. What is your point? "by the mere fact that it occured" - say WHAT!?!?!! When a vehicle pulls in front of you at the last moment, just what do you do to 'control' it? Your post indicates that your argument isn't very well thought out. many times when officers are responding, they have only partial information and are going into a situation that isn't contained yet. Your suppositions are wild and make no sense. Tell you what, go find an officer and give hime that argument. You might be surprised at how much you might learn in a short period of time.
Goodphotographer
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:33 p.m.
This will be a good story to follow up on. Many unanswered question can be raised from this post. Could it be the patrol car was traveling at a very high rate of speed? That would make it hard to tell where the siren is until it's right on top of you. (No pun intended) The patrol car has a very low profile compared to the high box style HVA or larger ladder hauling, red or yellow fire truck. Slower and bigger, a fire truck, with it's claxton horn is the hardest of the three ERV to miss at just after high noon. Sadly the emergency lights do not contrast as well in bright sun as at night. Loud music or head phones can cancel out a siren. The left turning car's driver could have been deaf. I hope all recover soon.
Ann English
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 9:19 p.m.
I knew that bright sunlight could make it harder to see oncoming traffic, but didn't realize that it can also make it harder to see emergency lights; sounds like THAT sort of sky condition lasts longer than a sunrise or sunset glare condition. I've been asked by one coworker if I wore headphones while driving, because she saw me come inside wearing them. I put them on right after arrival at work because I wanted to continue listening to a radio talk show. I believe wearing headphones is illegal and have only heard of anyone wearing headphones/earbuds while driving in FICTION.
Bear
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:48 p.m.
Wearing headphones while driving? Is that even legal? If it is, it isn't smart.
Alex Nickodemus
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:27 p.m.
I'll say it from the beginning. I do not know the circumstances of this accident beyond a2.com's reporting. Pull over and stop means pull over and stop. It does not mean hurry up and try to get where you're going before the emergency vehicle needs to get by. Based on this article, the police officer probably tried to pass the car using the oncoming lane, while the car was trying to turn into the car wash. Whether the lady was trying to get out of the way, or didn't notice the police car, or didn't pay attention to it, I don't know. That said, AAPD seems to have a habit of driving so fast that it frequently does not even ALLOW for reaction time on the part of other drivers. Traveling 90+ mph on city streets is irresponsible reckless, even with lights and sirens. Hypothetically speaking, suppose police car is doing 70 in traffic that's doing 40. It takes under 5 seconds for them to go from being 350 feet behind you (a distance at which over road noise and a radio, you may not hear the siren or see the lights if there's a larger vehicle behind you), to passing you. Average, non-distracted driver's reaction time is somewhere around 2 seconds. This leaves 3 seconds to safely slow to a stop (without slamming on your brakes and getting rear-ended), and pull off to the side of the road. If the cops are going faster than people can get out of their way, they're going too fast. Once again, I'm not saying this is what happened this time... but we've all seen it happen around here.
Youwhine
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 3:32 a.m.
Alex, it is easy to say that with hindsight being 20/20. However, do we know what the information was AT THE TIME? It was likely somebody (uncooperative) screaming into a phone that somebody had been shot. Often times there is not much more information than that. From the updates on a2.com, it doesn't sound like the "accidental" part came out until a while later.
Bear
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:47 p.m.
You are making a lot of assumptions and passing them off as facts. And you use the word "if" a lot in your argument. Supposition, hypothetically speaking, "if", don't cut it. Being aware of your surroundings when you drive is not optional. Look, Listen, Look again - in case of emergency vehicles, the steps are clear. It appears this person was oblivious.
Tag
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:52 p.m.
Sound travels at 768 mph or about 1 mile in 5 seconds.
Alex Nickodemus
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:32 p.m.
Also, the accidental gunshot wound was CLEARLY not a situation that warranted all officers on duty to go racing to the scene, as clearly displayed by the dozen or so police cars that responded to the crash.
djm12652
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:21 p.m.
Ohio plate on the Toyota...'nuf said...
Machine
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:02 p.m.
I cannot comment on the specifics of this incident since we don't know what caused it BUT people in general need to pay more attention to what is going on around them when they are driving. Along with all the other distractions drivers have to deal with these days, I am seeing more and more drivers wearing headphones while they drive. So stupid and so wrong.
Tag
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:52 p.m.
As others have mentioned I'm concerned about the need for these officers to come all the way across town to respond. How many officers at any given time, and at the time of this incident are/were on duty? I can't really see a reason for "all officers on duty" to respond to an incident, exceptions do apply, and I don't know the details of this incident but if everyone is at one scene that leaves the rest of the city unprotected. If a gunman is on the loose, then yes, lets get everyone on scene ASAP. But if it's a clear (FOR EXAMPLE) murder and suicide investigation then I don't see the need for officers to travel across town.
YpsiVeteran
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 2:59 p.m.
Tag, how does anyone know what the situation is until they get there? You think crime victims and suspects are great and reliable sources of information for dispatchers? Reports of potentially serious crimes are dispatched according to established protocols that are designed to protect the public and the medical personnel, firefighters and officers who are responding. What about this is hard to understand? Put yourself in this situation. You are sitting in your living room with a gunshot wound. Doesn't matter how you got it....either you were shot by a criminal or it was an accident or whatever. You call 911 and say you've been shot, then hang up. An ambulance is dispatched, as are the police. The medical personnel, having been told a gun is involved, get to your street first, then park down the block and wait for the police to come secure the scene before they enter the house. How many cars do you think you're in there hoping for? This is an established and common scenario..
nowayjose
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:48 p.m.
The key here is you don't know all the details. We'll leave the police work to the police and the blogging to you. Unless you have some police procedure background you're not telling us.
Bear
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:40 p.m.
Not "all officers on duty". Police vehicles are directed by dispatchers. Dispatchers have the discretion to dispatch vehicles to assist. Unless you are a police dispatcher, your argument is not valid and it really doesn't take more than a few minutes to respond to that location from where they were. A lot of people on here are acting as if the officers decided for themselves to go running up and see what happened. Bottom line: If you are driving, PAY ATTENTION!
justcurious
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:31 p.m.
It seems to be very commonplace everywhere nowadays to ignore emergency sirens and lights. People don't even slow down in some instances. Are they on the phone and distracted, or is their music too loud for them to hear what is going on? Or are they simply arrogant? If you took a driving course then you were told what to do. Just do it!
FUVM
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:24 p.m.
Just ask the road commission why this accident happened
OLDTIMER3
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:28 p.m.
On the other hand I've pulled over and stopped and the police car went maybe a 1/2 block further down the rd once traffic was cleared and have them turn their sirens and flashers off.
Ron Granger
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:27 p.m.
A friend was almost run down by the AAPD when crossing a street late at night. The police car was traveling at a high rate of speed without lights and sirens - and on the wrong side of the road. There were hardly any cars on the road. Being a cop doesn't mean you're always right.
a2citizen
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:48 p.m.
More proof that nothing good happens late at night.
Bear
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:36 p.m.
If there is a robbery in progress or a burglary police will often run silent. Watch what you're doing when crossing the street. Late at night on a road with hardly any cars on it? Shouldn't have been a problem seeing a vehicle speeding down the street then. Not a valid argument.
tdw
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:12 p.m.
And it doesn't mean they are always wrong either
johnnya2
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:26 p.m.
Are you saying the police had no headlights on? Basic rules of pedestrian traffic (and most children are taught this by age 3). LOOK BOTH WAYS BEFORE YOU CROSS. The only way they were "almost" run down was not looking or being lazy on their part.
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:37 p.m.
And if the police car was running lights and sirens, your friend would have stayed on the curb until they passed. And in this case, the police were running lights and sirens.
Arboriginal
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:25 p.m.
Ellsworth and State was the closest officer to 700 North Maple? REALLY?
Youwhine
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 3:27 a.m.
So if your loved one is shot, you only want one car to respond? And to answer your question, YES, it is possible that the closest available car might not be parked at 700 N. Maple when the call comes out. How many cars do you think are working at any one time?
Bear
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:33 p.m.
Sorry, for a shooting or a robbery, or some crime of that type; it isn't just one patrol car or the nearest one. It's all cars in the vicinity! I hear people moan about inadequate police protection (which is bogus) and then folks will complain when they do as they are trained and instructed to do? Police have radio dispatchers, you know. This action doesn't just happen on it's own. Dispatchers direct vehicles and the officers of those vehicles RESPOND! So, i would say to your comment - REALLY? Think about it.
Billy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:28 p.m.
I have a feeling someone was in a hurry to get there BECAUSE they were so far away.....they didn't want to be left out of all the cool action....
FUVM
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:23 p.m.
Imagine this scenario. For convenience let's say AA has 10 police cars on the road at any one time. Imagine 1 car goes on a suicidal person locked in their bathroom with a knife. They can't leave that situation. Imagine at the same time they are investigating a seriOus car accident at washtenaw/huron parkway where there are people trapped in cars. 2 cars there to collect info and direct traffic. Imagine a call for a woman being raped downtown. Another car out of service. Imagine a person at a house on miller that has died of suspicious circumstances. Another officer off the street until that scene can be investigated. Imagine a big fight at the pioneer. Maybe 2 officers for that. Now back to the scenario 10 officers minus 7 tied up on other calls leave only 3 officers to cover the city and 2 of them just cleared a burglary scene off platt rd. now they have to respond to the opposite side of town. Could happen. There are not an endless supply of officers. It is finite
OLDTIMER3
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:24 p.m.
I once witnessed the same thing happen. Several of us were pulling over and stopping and a lady in front of me with no turnsignal on made a left right smack in front of the police car. She said she was signaling with her arm out the window. I wonder what happened at the corner of Moon rd and Michigan Ave about 12 today. The fire trucks had west bound lanes blocked and were hosing the road down.
Kyle Feldscher
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:29 p.m.
Oldtimer- A minor amount of fertilizer had been spilled on the road and they were cleaning it up, as far as I know.
Ron Granger
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:14 p.m.
Police "flashers" often cannot be seen because they are obscured by other vehicles, especially tall vehicles. It is often very difficult to tell where a siren is coming from if you can't see the source.
Youwhine
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 3:24 a.m.
"We don't know what happened in this case. It's possible the woman's path to the right was blocked. That would also explain why the police apparently passed her on the left, in the oncoming traffic lane." They probably passed her on the left because that is what they are SUPPOSED to do and that is what is safest. Any driver with a brain cell knows passing on the left is unsafe. And if all the cars follow the law and pull to the right and STOP, then the safest place for an emergency vehicle is to pass on the left where MORE people are likely to see it coming and where the path is clear. Even if her path to the right was blocked, turning left is an inexcusable option. "She may have seen the police coming, with the right lane completely blocked, and then attempted to complete her turn to clear the path - not realizing they would blow past her on the left." If that is the case, she should be cited as she chose NOT to yield. You are right, there are too many unknowns, but those two specific examples you give show the driver making the WRONG choice and being at fault.
Ron Granger
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:53 p.m.
SMC, you cannot just take evasive action every time you merely hear a siren. To do so would invite an accident. You must first determine the location of the emergency vehicle, lest you turn into it's path, etc. If you slam on your brakes each time you hear a siren, I guarantee you will have an accident. As others have pointed out, stopping for an emergency vehicle requires watching what other drivers are doing. Because they often try and pass you, oblivious to the emergency. We don't know what happened in this case. It's possible the woman's path to the right was blocked. That would also explain why the police apparently passed her on the left, in the oncoming traffic lane. She may have seen the police coming, with the right lane completely blocked, and then attempted to complete her turn to clear the path - not realizing they would blow past her on the left. We don't know how good her hearing is. We don't know if she was on a phone (sadly, it is still legal in Michigan). We don't know if she was driving one of those cars that advertises how you can't hear any loud noises outside the car when the windows are rolled up. Lots of unknowns.
Jack
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:35 p.m.
RG - I agree with you. It can indeed be very difficult.
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:27 p.m.
Of course, if you can hear the siren, that means there's an emergency vehicle nearby, and you should probably pull over. Especially if every other car on the road appears to be pulled over or stopped.
Larry
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:14 p.m.
Chris G. You to go back to driving school. Any emergency vehilce regardless of what direction they are heading with lights and sirens on. It is your responiblity to pull over to the right and stop your vehilce. This person man or woman should be given a ticket for failure to yeild the right of way to an emergency vehilce.
SEC Fan
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 3:33 p.m.
Causing injury to an emergency worker for Failure to Yield to an Emergency Vehicle is actually a Felony.
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:36 p.m.
Chris - Your continued assertions that police are somehow at fault for this accident are a clear indication that you could use a refresher on what to do if there is an emergency vehicle coming up behind you.
GoNavy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:30 p.m.
Larry- I can assure you of two facts: 1.)I always pull over for emergency vehicles, and 2.)I have never t-boned another automobile while driving at a high rate of speed in the opposing lane of traffic. So, by those standards, I'd say I'd be well-served avoiding any more time at driver's ed.
Colleen Hood
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:12 p.m.
The dynamics are that the driver did not pull off to the side of the road for a cop car with sirens. I think most people on the roads today need a refresher driver's ed course.
Youwhine
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:05 p.m.
There should really be a better public service campaign to educate and remind drivers that if you see an emergency vehicle with lights activated you are to immediately pull to the right and stop. Don't keep driving because the vehicle is on the opposite side of the road, don't just sort of slow down a little bit, don't try to assume what direction they are going and pull into the center turn lane or opposite side of the road, do'nt turn in front of them. PULL TO THE RIGHT AND STOP. And if you see everybody else on the road pulling over/slowin g down, it might not be a bad idea to take a look around and see why. Lastly, it doesn't hurt to use those shiny things on the side of your car once in a while to take a look at what is going on behind you.
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:04 p.m.
I hope the officers involved in the accident were not seriously injured, and are able to return to work soon, keeping our community safe. I also hope that a lesson can be learned from this incident, namely, pay attention to what you're doing when driving a car.
pawky
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 6:59 p.m.
And, out come the cop-haters, as always. Speedy recovery to all involved.
Townie
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:36 p.m.
Sadly police officers are regular people and occasionally make mistakes. Let's not go accusing everyone who questions the police on this one. Can you categorically state that all police are never the cause of any accidents?
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:40 p.m.
It is quite sad how many people seem to take for granted both the safety of our community, and the men and women who make it so.
Elizabeth Smallwood
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 6:52 p.m.
I have seen more than one civilian driver completely ignore police sirens and cars as they are racing to a scene. It happens FREQUENTLY all over Ann Arbor; it amazed me how many people just flat out ignore the law to pull over and let them by. I'm not saying the cops are never wrong, but don't rush to blame them without further information.
bamwow
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 1:50 p.m.
This is ABSOLUTELY true, I see it time and time again when emergency vehicles have their sirens on that they are disregarded. I've always attributed it to people having loud music or other distractions in their vehicles.
Youwhine
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 3:18 a.m.
Billy and Scott... You cannot be serious. Whenver I pull over for a fire truck or ambulance or police car, I notice that about 1/3 of the other drivers just continue on as if it weren't there.
5c0++ H4d13y
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:14 p.m.
I've never seen that either. I commute everyday through A2.
Billy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:32 p.m.
Now not saying I'm out there driving everyday anymore.....but in my 20+ years on the road and at least 800k miles driven I've never seen ONE person disregard police sirens and lights. And you claim it's frequent and common place?
conairaa
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:39 p.m.
I agree completely. However I do think that sirens aren't as loud as they used to be. I think they are definitely harder to hear now than a few years ago.
bunnyabbot
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 6:52 p.m.
I hope everyone involved will be ok. what I find distrubing though is that officers on patrol on the very south side of town were on their way to the very north side of town (if 700 block of North Maple Road is accurate). Literally responding to or providing assitance to other officers at the complete opposite end of the city. How many patrol cars were out today working the city? Now two officers are injured because the lack of cops working the city during a shift?
YpsiVeteran
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 11:06 p.m.
GoNavy, as has been accurately pointed out by other posters, all the information they might have had is "shots fired." That's the way it usually works. The call to dispatch could easily have come from a neighbor or some other person who only knew they heard a shot or shots. If the call did come from inside the house, the caller could easily have been hysterical or otherwise unwilling to give any info. Happens every day. Please go on a ride along with your local police agency, so you can be an informed citizen.
grimmk
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 9:58 p.m.
@ Go Navy - The police going to the scene probably only had a very brief description of what transpired. More likely GUN SHOTS FIRED at X location person may be hurt. They probably don't know if it is multiple people or multiple gunshots. All they know is GUN SHOTS = possible death or serious injury.
FUVM
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:09 p.m.
Like, OMG people. Maybe other closer units were busy on other calls and couldn't be pulled away. Chris g, are you a medical expert and have diagnostic equipment available to determine if after shooting yourself know that it's not serious? Of course not. Do you know what what kind of damage a bullet can do to the body? Depending on caliber, trajectory, etc a bullet could enter an innocuous area of the body and travel inside to more vital areas and cause significant injury. What is your beef with 5-0?
GoNavy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:48 p.m.
Standard procedure - "all units" - for a self-inflicted non-lethal gunshot wound?
conairaa
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:45 p.m.
I wonder where they were coming from. W. Ellsworth Road there is in Pittsfield Township, and we have our own police.
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:25 p.m.
I think it's standard procedure for all available units to respond to this sort of emergency call.
theodynus
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 6:45 p.m.
I'm sure AAPD will investigate this in a completely level-handed and unbiased way.
YpsiVeteran
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 11:02 p.m.
Theodynus, I'm sure you'll be happy to learn that police agencies very rarely investigate their own crashes, especially crashes involving injuries and/or the public. Most agencies call a neighboring jurisdiction to handle the accident investigation. In this case, I would guess either the county sheriff, Pittsfield or MSP. This is standard practice in a modern, professional police agency, which AAPD is.
johnnya2
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 8:20 p.m.
@conairaa Pittsfield Twp is on the SOUTH side of Ellsworth. North is considered Ann Arbor unitl you are west of State Street. Zippy is in Pittsfield. The could have been driving down Ellsworth jjust like a Pittsfield Twp cop could drive east bound patrolling those businesses. If the police were at townhouse along Ellsworth, those are Ann Arbor Your implication is that they do not belong where they were, and quite frankly you are WRONG. The person who was not where they belong is the driver of the Camry. Failure to see or hear the siren is not an excuse anymore than saying you did not see the motorcycle
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:29 p.m.
I'm pretty sure they will investigate this in a level-headed and unbiased way, because AAPD has incredibly high professional standards. This is the primary reason for the level of safety in this town for decades, which, judging by the comments here, many people seem to take for granted.
bunnyabbot
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:25 p.m.
or it might be platt, but I have seen a2 cops on ellsworth b/t platt and carpenter before.
bunnyabbot
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:06 p.m.
I think carpenter road is the cut off for pittsfield twp, however at boundries you will often see and overlap of cop cars as they might need to get from one street to the other.
Wondering
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:03 p.m.
Pittsfield Township Police may be have jurisdiction there, or it is close to it.
GoNavy
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 6:49 p.m.
Ya, in addition to throwing the book at the Camry driver, the driver of the squad car will get a commendation for heroic service.
leezee
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 6:32 p.m.
Just don't accuse either of being a bad driver or your comment will be deleted.
a2citizen
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 10:47 p.m.
@Ron Granger and SMC "...That would leave just a siren, coming from a vague direction..." "... because if you can hear a siren, the first thing you should do is slow down and figure out where it's coming from... It's one lane in each direction there...pulling over to the right eliminates the vague direction and figuring anything out.
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:19 p.m.
If that were true, Ron, then surely those other cars would have been hit first, instead of the Toyota turning left into the car wash. Or, the accident wouldn't have occurred at all, since these mystery cars that weren't pulled over would have to be obstructing the path of the police vehicle. Not that it matters anyway, because if you can hear a siren, the first thing you should do is slow down and figure out where it's coming from. When you do that, you might also notice that every other car on the road has pulled over or stopped, and that might make you pause to wonder why...
Ron Granger
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 7:13 p.m.
"Yes, I'm sure there's a perfectly good reason why the driver of the Toyota failed to notice a car with bright flashing lights and a piercingly loud siren coming up behind her." It is entirely probable that the lights could not be seen because they were obscured by vehicles that had not pulled over. That would leave just a siren, coming from a vague direction. We've all heard sirens that were nearby but we were unable to locate their actual source and their heading.
SMC
Thu, May 17, 2012 : 6:59 p.m.
Yes, I'm sure there's a perfectly good reason why the driver of the Toyota failed to notice a car with bright flashing lights and a piercingly loud siren coming up behind her.