Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Police charged a Chicago woman with felony DUI and multiple other charges after she allegedly ran red lights on Orchard Drive and drove offroad between homes in Olympia Fields.
That report follows an instance where police charged a Chicago Heights man with criminal damage to property after allegedly kicking and damaging a door to an apartment.
Criminal Damage to Property
Police arrested Brandon R. Lashley, 23, 1938 Cambridge St., Chicago Heights, on January 21. He faces charges of one count of criminal damage to property and one count of disorderly conduct after police responded at 9:19 PM to an address on South Western Avenue to investigate a report of a domestic incident later changed to criminal damage to property.
According to the complainant, Mr. Lashley arrived at her apartment uninvited and allegedly said that if the complainant did not let him inside her apartment he would kick the door down, according to police. The complainant said she believes someone else let him into the apartment complex, according to police.
Mr. Lashley allegedly began banging on the door, according to police. The complainant still refused to open the door and Mr. Lashley allegedly began to bang on the door harder a total of three times, according to police, with the last one being the hardest and the loudest.
Mr. Lashley allegedly damaged the door and doorframe, according to the report, and then left the scene before police arrived.
At 10:25 PM, the responding officer spoke with Mr. Lashley over the phone. Mr. Lashley told the officer that he went to the complainant’s apartment and she buzzed him into the apartment complex, according to police. Mr. Lashley allegedly told the officer he did not understand why she would not let him in. Mr. Lashley then allegedly told police that he knocked on her door for about 5 to 10 minutes and that he did not kick the door, according to police.
The officer told Mr. Lashley that he had enough evidence and a witness who alleged criminal damage to property, according to the report. Mr. Lashley turned himself into the Park Forest Police Department at 11:50 PM, according to police. Police arrested Mr. Lashley on suspicion of criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct, according to the report. Officers later released Mr. Lashley on a recognizance bond with a court date of February 7, 2023, at 100 West Jefferson Street, Joliet, according to police.
Felony Aggravated DUI
An officer was driving northbound at 2:18 AM on Orchard Drive and Westwood Drive when he saw two vehicles stopped in the road on Orchard Drive, side-by-side. One vehicle was a Chevrolet sedan with its hazard lights flashing. The other was a black 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The officer activated his squad’s rear emergency lights and waited a short time to see if vehicles would begin moving. The Chevrolet then moved in front of the Jeep and stopped again, according to police. A LEADS inquiry of the Jeep showed that it had a suspension on insurance, according to the report.
Both vehicles began to travel northbound on Orchard Drive and the officer conducted a traffic stop by activating the emergency lights atop his vehicle. Both vehicles continued to travel a few hundred feet before coming to a stop on Orchard Drive, south of North Street, according to police.
The officer began to approach the Jeep and made eye contact with a woman in the driver’s seat through the driver’s side mirror, according to police. The Jeep then allegedly fled northbound on Orchard Drive over the posted 35 mph speed limit, according to police.
The officer followed in his vehicle with a siren activated, according to police.
The Jeep allegedly disobeyed the red light at Orchard Drive and Indiana Street, a stop sign at Orchard Drive and Illinois Street, and a red light at Orchard Drive and Lincoln Highway, according to police.
Jeep Drives into Olympia Fields
The vehicle continued northbound on Orchard Drive, crossing Lincoln Highway, and driving into the Maynegayte Neighborhood of Olympia Fields. It turned westbound onto London Drive, according to police. The driver allegedly disobeyed the stop sign at London Drive, according to the report.
The driver turned the Jeep onto Brookside Boulevard traveling northbound which dead-ended at a cul-de-sac, according to police. The vehicle turned around and allegedly fled southbound on Brookside Boulevard. Then it traveled onto eastbound London Drive, according to police. At this time, Olympia Fields officers arrived and saw the vehicle turn northbound onto Indiana Circle, according to police.
The vehicle allegedly continued to flee, driving in between two residences, coming out between two others onto London Drive, and continuing east, according to police.
As the vehicle drove onto Orchard Drive, an Olympia Fields officer allegedly saw the vehicle hit the median and collided with a tree, according to police. The vehicle then reversed and allegedly drove in the opposite lanes of traffic, southbound on Orchard Drive in the northbound lane, turning westbound onto Lincoln Highway, according to police.
Officers continued the pursuit of the Jeep westbound on Lincoln Highway at speeds in excess of 80 mph in the posted 40 mph zone, according to police. The front bumper of the Jeep then fell off in the area of Lincoln Highway and Indiana Street, according to police. At this, a Park Forest Commander advised the officer who initiated the traffic stop on Orchard Drive to terminate the pursuit, according to police. That officer then activated his vehicle’s siren and emergency lights and returned to collect the bumper left on the roadway, according to police.
Olympia Fields police continue to pursue the Jeep northbound on Olympian Way to Kedzie Avenue and Vollmer Road where the vehicle stopped, by this point disabled, according to police.
Responding to the intersection of Kedzie and Vollmer, police found the driver of the Jeep, Xandria Vinson, was in custody. She was sitting in an Olympia Fields squad, according to the report. A LEADS inquiry revealed that Ms. Vinson had suspended driving privileges on a statutory summary suspension, according to police.
A search of the black Jeep revealed an open, two-thirds full bottle of Hennessy liquor, according to police.
The Jeep itself had extensive front-end damage including a flat front passenger side tire, according to police. Police impounded the vehicle, according to the report.
A Park Forest officer took custody of Ms. Vinson and saw that she allegedly had bloodshot, glassy eyes, slurred speech, and the odor of an alcoholic beverage on her breath, according to police. Ms. Vinson required assistance from police to get out of the Olympia Fields squad car and required assistance from officers while walking to the Park Forest squad vehicle, according to police.
At the Park Forest Police Department, the arresting officer spoke briefly with Ms. Vinson. She allegedly said she had stopped to speak with an associate, and initially did stop for the police. She allegedly said she felt unsafe and scared because it was dark, according to the report. Ms. Vinson allegedly said she came from a party near 175th Street but did not know exactly where or in what city, according to police.
At 3:18 AM, another officer assisted the arresting officer in conducting field sobriety tests, according to police. At 4:10 AM, the arresting officer gave Ms. Vinson a breathalyzer test but the machine “timed out” and no sample was provided, according to police.
An Assistant States Attorney at Felony Review approved charges of aggravated fleeing/eluding and aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol, according to police.
Police arrested Xandria Z. Vinson, 27, 7544 S. Indiana Ave., Chicago, on January 22. She faces charges of felony aggravated fleeing/eluding; felony aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol; driving under the influence of alcohol; stopping, standing, or parking on a roadway; operating a vehicle with suspended registration; disobeying traffic control devices; disobeying a stop sign; leaving the scene of an accident; aggravated speeding; driving while license was suspended; and operating an uninsured motor vehicle.
About Police Reports
Please note that we repeatedly say “according to police” in these reports and often use “allegedly.” We are not asserting in any way that those police arrested and charged committed any offenses. We report on what is in the reports that the police furnish to us. As those accused are innocent until proven guilty, the burden is on prosecutors and police to prove all alleged crimes.
eNews Park Forest has continuously published the addresses of those arrested and will continue to do so. 5 ILCS 140/2.15 states that the governmental body (for these reports, the Police Department), shall release information on those charged, including their name, age, and address. This information is necessary to ensure the proper identity of those arrested.
Presumption of Innocence
An arrest does not mean that a person is guilty. The law presumes all those whom police arrest are innocent until proven guilty. It is the policy of eNews Park Forest not to remove items from the public record from publication. Suppose you find your name in the police reports. Our policy is that we will only add information relevant to the final disposition of the case at hand, e.g., “Mr. Smith was subsequently acquitted,” “Mr. Smith entered a guilty plea,” or “All charges against Mr. Smith were subsequently dropped.” We will do so upon receiving and verifying proof of such disposition.
We do not strike, “unpublish,” or delete news.
Police captured all the incidents in this report on body-worn and dash-mounted cameras by officers at the respective scenes, according to police. All Park Forest police officers wear body-worn cameras. Officials typically abbreviate these devices as BWC in the reports.
We encourage persons wishing to leave anonymous information on any criminal matters, including narcotics or gang activity, to call the Park Forest Police Department Investigations Division at (708) 748-1309.
