KENOSHA, Wis. — An alarming number of high-speed I-94 chases through Kenosha County continue to consume local law enforcement agencies and put the community at risk.
Operating on the Wisconsin-Illinois border, Kenosha law enforcement often pursue chases that start in other jurisdictions and travel through Kenosha.
On Sunday, a crime ring stole nine luxury vehicles from a Waukesha Land Rover dealership. Police say the suspects led them on a 30-minute, high-speed chase toward the Illinois border.
Calvin Valentine, 17, of Chicago was driving a stolen Land Rover at speeds over 115 miles per hour. He hit spikes strips and continued fleeing despite driving on three tires.
The chase ended at I-94 in Pleasant Prairie, just north of the Wisconsin-Illinois border. Valentine was arrested and charged with numerous crimes.
Drivers often flee across the border knowing Wisconsin law enforcement might not continue its chase once it reaches Illinois.
“Once we hit that Illinois line, it's essentially a wall,” Kenosha Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Colin Coultrip said. “Unless it’s some heinous crime of murder or some kind of use of a dangerous weapon, and they know this, we don’t continue into Illinois.”
Pleasant Prairie Police Department has seen a significant spike in high-speed chases since 2020.
Last year, the agency was involved in 89 chases.
“There was an attitude of we are just not going to stop for you and we don’t have to,” Pleasant Prairie Police Chief David Smetana said.
Smetana said his department doesn’t necessarily stop its pursuits at the border. It’s often determined by split-second decisions from supervisors and officers and based on safety.
“There are times when we stop our pursuits moving south of the border,” Smetana said. “There are other times we will continue. That takes a very coordinated effort between not only us but our law enforcement agencies to the south.”
Local law enforcement continues to find ways to stop chases before they become dangerous. Those steps include Improved equipment, effective tactical maneuvers, and ongoing training.
It remains a concern, according to Smetana.
“They can drive 120 or 130 miles an hour recklessly and with abandoning all safety and concern for everybody else,” Smetana said. “We can’t.”
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