South Bend man arrested after vehicle chase with state police

Drunk man flees from trooper, crashes into car and porch

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WISH) — A South Bend man landed in jail after he fled from an Indiana state trooper and crashed into a parked car and porch on Friday night.

At 9 p.m. Friday, An Indiana State trooper was on patrol when he saw a gray 2007 Audi with two equipment violations traveling northbound on Portage Avenue. The trooper caught up to the Audi and attempted to stop it near the intersection of Portage Avenue and Woodlawn Boulevard in South Bend. When the trooper turned on his red and blue lights, the driver of the Audi sped away and a chase began.

The driver of the Audi fled down several city streets and eventually ended up traveling on Beverly Place, where the Audi crashed into a parked car. After this collision, the Audi continued across the street, crashing into a wooden porch of a house in the 2000 block of Beverly Place. After this crash, the Audi was immobile and the driver, identified as Trae Lottie, 28, of South Bend, was taken into custody. Further investigation revealed that Lottie was allegedly under the influence of alcohol and driving with a suspended license.

Lottie was taken to a local hospital to be medically cleared from crashing and to submit a chemical test. Results of the chemical test are pending. After being medically cleared, Lottie was arrested and taken to the St. Joseph County Jail, where he is being preliminarily charged with resisting law enforcement, operating while intoxicated-prior, operating while intoxicated-endangerment, driving while suspended-prior, and reckless driving.

Scene of the vehicle crash near the 2000 block of Beverly Place. (Provided Photo/Indiana State Police)