Cleveland police are eyeing felony riot charges for the stunt drivers who took over intersections across the city last weekend. First, though, authorities have to track down the culprits, who dispersed at the end of the night.
Officers have identified “many persons of interest” and are investigating, Chief Dorothy Todd said. Todd and other officials faced two hours of questioning from City Council members Wednesday about how police plan to curtail the chaotic driving.
The street takeovers – in which drivers do donuts in the middle of intersections and roads while onlookers record them – have been happening all over the country. The incidents have been happening for at least several months in Cleveland, including not far from the mayor’s downtown apartment building.
Safety Director Dornat Drummond said that no one should glorify street takeovers and that police will hold accountable those who are responsible.
“There’s a perception in the public that the Division of Police is not doing anything, the Division of Police is just sitting on their hands,” he said. “That is farthest from the truth.”
Council members urged police to make arrests and use such technology as drones to monitor attempted street takeovers in the future. President Blaine Griffin said he had been fielding calls from upset residents.
“Many of the citizens of our city are pissed,” he said. “This was unacceptable. People are angry. People want to see accountability. People want to understand why and how this is happening.”
Video of the takeovers ricocheted around the internet and television, and Council Member Danny Kelly called for a visible and multi-prong response.
“They’re looking to see something on TV,” he said of his constituents. “They’re looking to see an arrest.”
Cleveland police chief: Citywide street takeovers divided police resources
Todd opened her presentation to council with the police account of how Saturday’s takeovers unfolded.
Late Saturday afternoon, police received a tip from counterparts in Cincinnati that people from across Ohio were planning a night of stunt driving in Cleveland, Todd said. Police called in more officers and notified Ohio Highway Patrol and other law enforcement. As police readied, they weren’t sure whether the tip would bear out, given the night’s rainy weather, she said.
Then, that night, drivers took over intersections across the city, Todd said. They drove donuts, shot off fireworks and tried to light fires on the rain-slick roads, she said. The chief read a list of more than a dozen spots around Cleveland where stunt driving was said to have taken place.
“They were hitting multiple neighborhoods, multiple streets on different sides of the city, which does split up our resources when that happens,” Todd said.
Finally, around 20 vehicles shut down part of the Innerbelt highway near the West 14th Street exit at 4 a.m. Sunday, she said. People shot off fireworks, tried to light fires and pointed firearms at other motorists on the highway, the chief said.
As police planned to get on to the on-ramp to break up the disturbance, state highway patrol sent an alert that the stunt drivers had left.
Todd said that an off-duty Parma officer was assaulted and that someone fired a pellet gun and hit a University Circle officer. Both are OK, she said.
Helicopter but no police drones in air during takeovers
One sticking point for council members was the city’s stable of drones. While the police helicopter was in the air during the takeovers, police drones were not. Drummond and Todd said the city is still working on its drone policies and training officers to fly the devices.
Council members – who passed legislation in 2022 to buy drones – were impatient to see them up in the air.
“We acted appropriately, we acted expeditiously, and there’s great frustration on this side of the table that we want to see those up,” Michael Polensek, the chair of the safety committee, told Todd. “Because that would have been very helpful not only in this case but in other cases that we’re dealing with.”
Todd said police are also considering a lower-tech way to stop stunt drivers: blocking intersections with large city vehicles.
Another approach is what Todd referred to as “street milling.” Other cities have outfitted intersections with rumble strips akin to the indentations dug into the sides of highways. The uneven pavement is meant to damage the tires of drivers doing donuts.
Felony charges possible for Cleveland stunt drivers
City and state laws give police a few avenues for charging drivers who take over intersections. Police can charge defendants with street racing or stunt driving.
The first charge is a first-degree misdemeanor, which carries a maximum sentence of 180 days in jail. A judge could also suspend the driver’s license. Stunt driving will soon become a first-degree misdemeanor, too, once a recently passed state law takes effect.
Todd said police are also looking at aggravated riot charges, which are fifth-degree felonies. Those charges carry a sentence of six to 12 months in prison. Penalties could be steeper if prosecutors were to add firearms specifications, for instance.
So far this year, police have written 34 citations for street racing or stunt driving. Authorities have also issued aggravated arson arrest warrants for two adults in connection with a street takeover in September, a City Hall spokesperson said.
Police have set up a task force that includes the division’s traffic unit, gang impact unit, arson unit and partner law enforcement agencies, she said. Although drivers removed their license plates, investigators are reviewing footage from earlier in the night to try to identify the vehicles, Todd said.
The chief said police plan to share information from their investigation.
“Our hope is that, as a whole community and not just the City of Cleveland, that we’ll be able to share this information and bring a bigger case against the participants in this.”
