A 58-year-old Ceres woman has died as a result of injuries she suffered in a motorcycle accident on Highway 99 over the weekend. The motorcycle accident occurred at the beginning of a police chase of a man who escaped from a police chase the night before. Law enforcement attempted to close in on the man Saturday, for the second straight day.
The chase took a great toll, however. Law enforcement attempted to apprehend the man for questioning related to a number of burglaries. The man fled from police on foot near Highway 99. He reportedly jumped a fence and ran through traffic on the highway. The man’s conduct reportedly distracted drivers and caused traffic to slow.
A 57-year-old man riding a Harley-Davidson with a passenger aboard was distracted by the man running on the highway. He then reportedly noticed the snarled traffic, entered the center divider and slammed on his brakes, hoping to avoid a collision with other vehicles snarled on Highway 99.
The motorcyclist reportedly lost control of the Harley and his passenger was thrown from the bike. The 58-year-old woman who was riding as the passenger suffered severe head injuries in the motorcycle accident. She was taken to a Stanislaus County hospital, where she later died.
Manteca police say a Good Samaritan wanted to lend assistance to the downed bikers and jumped out of his vehicle along Highway 99. The Manteca man involved in the chase jumped into the car and fled to the south, according to Manteca police.
Law enforcement says the Manteca man led a two-hour chase crossed county lines and counties and involved three separate allegedly stolen vehicles. The chase reportedly went from Stanislaus County, crossed over into Merced County and later returned to Stanislaus. Police ultimately arrested the man in Modesto.
The man appeared in court in Stockton on Wednesday, however, prosecutors had not yet filed formal charges.
Source: Stockton Record, “Woman injured during pursuit dies,” Zachary K. Johnson, Sept 8. 2011
