A juvenile driver was arrested early Monday morning on several charges following a high-speed chase on West College Drive in the Cheyenne area that ended when the driver crashed the vehicle.

Laramie County Sheriff's Office spokesman Brandon Warner says the incident started just before midnight on Sunday when a deputy saw a car traveling on West College Drive at a high rate of speed with no lights on. The deputy caught up with the vehicle and tried to conduct a traffic stop, but the car refused to stop.

Warner says that after about two miles the car crashed in the Bar X area of College Drive, and three juveniles who were in the car were detained. AMR was called to the scene and determined that none of the juveniles were injured.

The kids' parents were called to the scene of the crash. Investigators found out that the juvenile driver had been driving around the Cheyenne area, speeding with no lights on to try to scare other cars.

The passengers were released to their parents. The driver was then taken to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center for medical clearance, after which he was booked into the Laramie County Juvenile Services Center.

Warner says he faces the following charges:

Aggravated flee/elude property damage
Restricted License
Reckless Endangering
Reckless Driving
Fail to maintain lane
Headlights required
Taillights required

The news release on the incident includes the following comments:

This incident could have been a real tragedy. We all need to talk with our young drivers about the dangers of driving recklessly and remind them that running for Law Enforcement will only make a bad situation worse.

2022's Deadliest Wyoming County by Traffic Deaths

While car crashes can occur anywhere, some roads in Wyoming are more dangerous than others.

According to Wyoming Highway Patrol data, there were 117 fatal crashes in the Cowboy State in 2022 resulting in 133 deaths.

Of those fatal crashes, the majority (13.68%) occurred in Laramie County -- two in January, one in February, one in March, two in April, one in June, two in July, three in August, two in September, one in November, and one in December.

Sweetwater County saw the second most fatal crashes last year, 12, while Fremont and Lincoln counties each saw 10.

Albany and Park counties each recorded eight, and Campbell, Converse, and Natrona counties each tallied seven.

The deadliest 2022 crash in Laramie County took place on June 17 when two semis collided on Interstate 80 east of Cheyenne and immediately became engulfed in flames killing both drivers and a passenger.



Laramie County also saw two fatal crashes involving motorcyclists, two fatal crashes involving juveniles, and a fatal crash involving a pedestrian last year.

Below is the Wyoming Highway Patrol narrative of every fatal crash that occurred in Laramie County in 2022.

Gallery Credit: Joy Greenwald

 

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