Maryland teen driver sideswipes Virginia State Trooper during pursuit in Fairfax County: police

FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. – A Virginia State Police trooper and three other people were injured in a crash that occurred during a pursuit involving a teenage driver on Saturday evening in Fairfax County.

Police responded to an occupied vehicle on the left shoulder of I-66 Express Lanes at the 58-mile marker at around 8:59 p.m.

Upon arrival, troopers noticed an individual was acting strangely, as well as the presence of narcotics in the vehicle. A trooper asked the driver to turn off the vehicle multiple times and the driver refused, eventually pulling away from the trooper. 

According to police, Virginia State Police then initiated a pursuit.

Troopers again tried to stop the vehicle in the Express Lanes, but both the driver and one of the State Police vehicles lost control in the median. The suspected driver was able to regain control while the trooper ended up in the westbound Express Lanes on I-66, striking a Honda CR-V.

Police say the suspect eventually exited onto Route 50 westbound and turned onto a residential road which had a dead end. The driver, a 17-year-old from Maryland, was then taken into custody after first being checked out at a local hospital. Virginia State Police will be obtaining charges for eluding, driving without a license, reckless driving, and additional charges are pending.

The male driver of the Honda CR-V, a four-year-old passenger, and the trooper involved in the crash were all taken to an area hospital, checked out, and released. A female passenger in the vehicle was kept overnight at the hospital for observation of her non-life-threatening injuries.

Another vehicle in the I-66 westbound Express Lanes suffered damage after striking debris from the crash.
The incident remains under investigation.