'Please kill me!' Woman led Butler police on wild pursuit reaching 90 mph, ending in crash



BUTLER -- It started as a simple traffic stop for speeding in Butler, but it ended in a wild pursuit and crash -- and a cry for help.

When the 20-year-old driver of an SUV was pulled over, at first, it did not seem like a big deal.

"The reason I got you back there is, you were going 47 in a 30 mile an hour zone," the officer said to the driver.

Soon, Butler police got a whiff of something else going on inside Nia Stevens' vehicle.

"Do you smoke marijuana in this car at all?" asked the officer.

"Yeah, last night," Stevens said.

"Is that why I'm smelling it?" the officer asked again.

"Yeah," Stevens replied.

This all unfolded in the middle of the day back on May 8. Police tried to reason with Stevens.

"You can step out," the officer said.

"No sir," Stevens said.

"You're not going to get out of the car?" the officer asked. "You can just leave your keys there. You don't have to step out of your car."

Butler police pursuit of Nia Stevens



But Stevens took off -- leading the officer on a dangerous 90 mph chase. Stevens went westbound on Silver Spring, where police said she hit a utility pole, causing a power outage in the area. She then turned to face southbound on 124th Street, and then proceeded westbound on Silver Spring.

Butler police pursuit of Nia Stevens



Butler police pursuit of Nia Stevens



Police said Stevens struck the rear driver's side of a squad and blew through a busy intersection at Silver Spring and Lilly, before her SUV flipped over.

Stevens lifted herself out of the vehicle -- against police instructions -- and then made a startling request.

Butler police pursuit of Nia Stevens



"Please, please, please kill me!" exclaimed Stevens.

Arrest of Nia Stevens



As other officers arrived on the scene, Stevens was placed under arrest. Then came another confession.

"Why did you leave?" asked an officer.

"I had a warrant," Stevens said.

Stevens was charged with eluding an officer, recklessly endangering safety, resisting or obstructing an officer and two drug charges. Police said she also tried to injure herself when she was hospitalized after the crash.

She made her initial appearance in court Wednesday, May 15. Cash bond was set at $500 -- along with a $2,500 surety bond. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for June 14.