PARMA, Ohio — In the last seven months, Parma police pursued people into Cleveland five different times, with three of them ending in serious crashes in which three people died.
The pursuits last summer prompted a meeting with Cleveland and Parma city leaders.
Watch more on Cleveland's desired meeting with Parma:
The police chief canceled a scheduled interview with News 5 Investigators yesterday just hours before, and the mayor’s office declined, saying the law office said not to talk about recent pursuits, citing potential lawsuits.
What we do know now, Parma police want flock cameras.
Parma police shared a new video from its most recent pursuit into Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood Tuesday night.
Parma said it was helping out Seven Hills police tracking a stolen car through OnStar.
In the video, you see the car weaving through traffic and when police cross into Cleveland.
The car was slowed by OnStar and hit a telephone pole.
It appears four people bailed.
A different pursuit two weeks ago left Cary Pekarcsik without a car.
Watch Investigator Tara Morgan's full report on this pursuit — the fourth such chase in Old Brooklyn in six months - and another that ended with an innocent driver taking the brunt of it:
“I was kind of shaken,” Pekarcsik said last week.
Surveillance video shows when his van was hit nearly head-on. That chase is under review.
“I think they’re cowboys; they want to get on a horse and chase somebody. It’s crazy,” Pekarcsik said.
Last November, a 70-year-old man was hurt in a t-bone crash during a pursuit.
Watch more on the November pursuit that left a 70-year-old man injured:
In August, two separate chases just days apart ended with three deaths.
In the second one, police say the officer lost sight of a car they were after on 176.
The car went head-on into Esenje Goodman, who was heading to the store.
"I was going in and out of consciousness, and I was like, 'I hope this wasn’t it,” Goodman said last year.
Watch more on Goodman's recovery journey since the crash:
In 2023, Parma said it had fewer chases than the year before and terminated them more frequently.
Per Parma, In 2022, they had 157 pursuits, with 97 determined by the officer or supervisor.
In 2023, Parma chased 118 times, with 97 called off.
In an email, the Mayor noted a pursuit policy change last spring as well as additional training.
But the two deadly chases last August prompted Cleveland city leaders to call for a meeting with Parma which happened in September.
Watch more on the deadly crash from Aug. 27:
The Mayor said in an email that Cleveland was satisfied with its pursuit training, supervisor oversight and policy review.
In a recent budget meeting, the chief requested $12,000 for four Flock cameras at $3,000 a piece that police said they hope will alleviate the need to chase into neighboring cities like Cleveland.
Right now, Parma has just three license plate readers at intersections near the Cleveland border.
Police said they’re located at Ridge and Pearl Roads, State Road and Tuxedo Avenue and Broadview at Tuxedo Avenue.
The license plate readers were purchased from Cuyahoga County for $18,000 each and are managed by Chagrin Valley Dispatch.
Police said they’ll lose access to neighboring Flock cameras next month.
Pekarcsik, who had his van totaled, said he hadn’t filed a claim yet with Parma since he still doesn’t have a car.
