Waukesha police chase, crash shuts down I-94 for hours
WAUKESHA, Wis. - A Waukesha police chase led to a multi-vehicle crash on I-94 Saturday, Oct. 28.
According to the Waukesha Police Department, an officer tried to stop a vehicle for "multiple violations" near Grandview Boulevard and I-94. The vehicle took off and got on I-94 eastbound, but the officer "immediately terminated" the brief pursuit.
Moments later, police said the fleeing vehicle crossed three lanes of traffic and hit another vehicle, causing that vehicle to roll over and hit a second vehicle. The suspect's vehicle then went off the road and hit a tree.
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"It’s just so horrible," said Tyler Pudleiner. "Kinda just walking into chaos."
Pudleiner said his first view of the backup came when he and his mom drove up to it. He then got a better look near his Waukesha home overseeing the interstate.
I-94 crash after Waukesha police chase (Courtesy: TimSnopek.com)
"Living up here and being at home and just looking down, I mean you get everything from – you see sirens go by, and they’re flying down the freeway," he said.
Police said the suspect, a 20-year-old man, was arrested and taken to a hospital. He is believed to be in stable condition, and police said drugs/alcohol appear to be a factor in the crash.
The driver of the vehicle that rolled over, a 74-year-old woman, was also taken to a hospital with multiple injuries. Police said she, too, is believed to be in stable condition. No one in the third vehicle was hurt.
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"I get people go through problems, we all struggle with our demons," said Pudleiner. "To be that selfish and end up, as you said, wrecking an older lady and everything like that, that’s just completely wrong in my mind."
Pudleiner has a unique viewpoint; he was a victim of the 2021 Waukesha Christmas Parade attack, run over while performing with the Waukesha South High School marching band.
"Just with having been injured in the parade, that’s changed by whole perspective on life you know," he said.
Scene at I-94 eastbound ramp at Meadowbrook in Waukesha
Pudleiner said he wishes his best along the road to recovery.
"We gotta push through and keep spreading kindness and the same time," he said.
The Waukesha County Sheriff's Department and Wisconsin State Patrol assisted at the scene. Traffic was completely shut down during the crash investigation, reopening around 4:15 p.m.