Driver Arrested for Fleeing Police 'Just Wanted to Go Home,' Didn't Want to Wait

A 44-year-old Western Springs woman was arrested after she sped away from police, blew through multiple stop signs and almost hit two cars because she "just wanted to go home," La Grange Park police said.

Police stopped Alison Fitzpatrick, of the 1000 block of Hickory Drive in Western Springs, after a caller at the BP gas station at Ogden Avenue and La Grange Road reported a woman who was driving erratically, swerving in and out of traffic and crossing into oncoming traffic before she hit a street sign on Wolf Road about 7:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 10, police said. 

Police said she had pulled into the gas station after one of her tires went flat from hitting the sign.

She told police she was OK and wanted to go home, and that she hit something, but wasn’t sure what it was, police said. 

When the officer told her to move forward 10 feet while they looked at her information, she sped out of the gas station parking lot and drove south on La Grange Road, almost striking two vehicles, police said.

She then blew multiple stop signs and crossed into Western Springs, where three squads were able to block traffic and stop her in the 4000 block of Wolf Road.

Fitzpatrick told police she was nervous and just wanted to get home. She said she was going to pick up some alcohol, and that she didn’t want to wait for police at the gas station, police said.

She was charged with failure to yield, three counts of disobeying a stop sign, failure to signal a left turn, driving on a suspended license, no proof of insurance and fleeing/attempting to elude an officer. She was given a Nov. 13 court date and released on bond. 

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Police Blotter information is provided by local law enforcement agencies. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome.