Man accused of trying to escape police; 5 hurt in crash

BREWER – Four people learned to be more selective about choosing a designated driver when the Bangor man with whom they were riding early Saturday morning reportedly tried to elude police at speeds exceeding 90 mph before striking a telephone pole.

“Most of the other people had been looking for rides home” from a Bangor tavern, Brewer police Cpl. Keith Emery said Saturday. “The driver only knew one of the passengers.”

None of the five in the vehicle suffered any life-threatening injuries.

The passengers in the vehicle had asked for a ride home because they had likely been too intoxicated to drive after leaving the tavern, Emery said. The driver had been in Brewer trying to find a friend when he noticed the police cruiser.

“Thankfully it was the time of morning where no one was really driving around,” Emery said.

Lori Gross, 24, of Millinocket, who had been sitting in the back seat, was ejected through one of the rear windows of the red 2002 Chevy Blazer rental and reported some back pain, but was able to walk after the accident, Emery said.

Nicholas Marine, 38, of Marietta, Ga., who rented the vehicle, was riding in the passenger seat during the accident, Emery said. Marine suffered head injuries.

The driver, Antonio Burke, 29, of Bangor, and two passengers in the rear seat, Thomas Taylor, 37, of Bangor and Tammy Trott, 26, of Baring Plantation, suffered bumps and bruises but did not appear to have been injured seriously, Emery said. All of them were taken to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor for evaluation.

It is unknown whether the people in the vehicle were wearing seat belts, according to police. The Blazer was destroyed in the accident.

The vehicle, valued at more than $25,000, had been rented by Marine on Friday from Avis Rent A Car in Bangor.

All five people in the vehicle were injured when the Blazer struck a telephone pole on South Main Street near Brookside Grill after eluding police for nearly 3 miles, Emery said.

“They were on North Main Street near Irving Mainway when Officer Rodney Gerald saw him run a stop sign while speeding,” Emery said. When the officer turned on his lights to pull over the vehicle, the driver began increasing his speed and failed to stop for a red light at the intersection of North Main and Wilson streets.

Police clocked the Blazer on radar at 46 mph in the 25-mph zone and estimated that it was travelling at more than 60 mph when it was going down State Street hill, partially in the oncoming lane, and forced a car off the road, Emery said. When an officer was available to get to the scene, the car that had been forced off the road already had left.

Brewer police Officer John Knapp was near the Brewer Fire Department when the Blazer sped by, and he joined the pursuit, Emery said. The Blazer drove into the oncoming traffic lane again to pass a car near the Oak Hill Cemetery before losing police while traveling at speeds exceeding 90 mph.

Knapp later noticed a large cloud of dust near the Brookside Grill where he found that the Blazer had struck a telephone pole, Emery said. The vehicle had been slowing down for a turn in the road when the driver apparently hit a curb and lost control before traveling through the oncoming lane and striking the utility pole on the opposite side of the road.

The pursuit was not classified as a chase because police did not follow the vehicle closely and create a more dangerous situation, Emery said.

Burke was charged with felony counts of operating a vehicle after the revocation of his license and eluding a police officer. He likely will be charged with additional felonies and several misdemeanors after an investigation is completed, including a blood-alcohol test, Emery said.

No charges are expected to be filed against any of the passengers, Emery said. Passengers told police that they had asked Burke to stop the vehicle, but he had said that he wasn’t going to be arrested.

Burke was arrested in 2000 for OUI and eluding police in a similar situation, Emery said.