'Very dangerous:' Wauwatosa police end high-speed pursuit with stop sticks

WAUWATOSA -- The Wauwatosa Police Department released dashcam video on Thursday, March 21 which shows intense moments during the pursuit of a stolen vehicle in January. Officers deployed stop sticks twice during the pursuit -- which is what ultimately stopped the suspect's vehicle and ended the chase safely.

Wauwatosa police pursuit

Dashcam video shows the moments officers on patrol spotted a stolen vehicle on Burleigh near the Mayfair Collection. But when the officers tried to pull the vehicle over, the driver sped off.

The driver, 17-year-old Rezhun Scott, eventually sped westbound on Burleigh at 80 miles per hour, while swerving around vehicles.

"Other officers try to anticipate where the car might be heading to," said Capt. Brian Zalewski of the Wauwatosa Police Department.

One of those officers deployed a stop stick at 92nd and Burleigh -- which struck the passenger side tires of the speeding vehicle.

Wauwatosa police pursuit

Capt. Brian Zalewski

"It's very dangerous for them to be ahead of a high-speed chase and put themselves at harm's way in order to get these devices in the roadway," Zalewski said.

Scott continued to speed away -- running a red light and nearly hitting another vehicle on the Menomonee River Parkway.

Additional stop sticks were deployed at 104th Street -- hitting all four tires. Scott sped 65 miles per hour as all the tires were deflating. The pursuit ended one-and-a-half hours later -- at Mayfair and Auer.

Wauwatosa police pursuit

"Initially, it's almost that verbal shock that the suspects need at this point, like, 'Hey, this is real,' and it worked. They were compliant," Zalewski said.

No one was injured in this pursuit.

Scott is due in court on March 28.