BRUNSWICK, Maine — A 56-year-old man led police on a low-speed chase along Interstate 295 between Freeport and Brunswick on Tuesday morning. Police believe the driver suffered from dementia.
Brunswick police were notified at 5:13 a.m. that Freeport police were attempting to stop a 1997 Lincoln Town Car on I-295 northbound after receiving complaints of erratic driving, Brunswick Police Cmdr. Marc Hagan said.
The driver, whose speed averaged about 35 miles per hour despite the 70-mph speed limit, refused to stop, according to Hagan, so Brunswick police set out a spike mat south of the Brunswick exit.
The Town Car drove over the spikes and all four tires were flattened, but the driver continued on to the Brunswick exit and traveled along Pleasant Street at a speed of about 10 miles per hour, Hagan said.
“He eventually turned right onto Webster and then right onto Turner, and ran into a snowbank behind the Salvation Army, but he kept trying to drive forward,” Hagan said.
A Brunswick police officer smashed the car’s window and turned off the car’s engine. Police then called for emergency medical treatment for the man.
Family members who were called to the scene were “surprised” and said the man hasn’t driven in years, Hagan said.
The man was taken to Parkview Adventist Medical Center. No charges were filed.