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WINONA LAKE - A Mentone man, Thurman Sparkman, is in critical condition today after leading police on a high-speed chase through Warsaw that ended in rural Winona Lake at 11:38 p.m.
Warsaw police were tipped off by a Freedom Oil gas station clerk that a possible drunk driver was leaving the station in a white Oldsmobile. Police caught up to the car, reportedly driven by the 36-year-old Sparkman, on Fort Wayne Street, Warsaw, and prepared for a routine traffic stop. Instead of stopping, Sparkman allegedly began driving at speeds in excess of 60 mph, running stop lights and driving the wrong way down one-way roads.
After leading police in circles through Warsaw, Sparkman turned east onto Kings Highway, reportedly driving at 70 mph. Just east of CR 250E, police said, Sparkman began driving left of center and overcorrected his vehicle in an apparent attempt to return to his lane of travel. This sent the car off the south side of the road, where it rolled over and landed on its top, 2,700 feet west of CR 275E.
Police called for medical and fire assistance at the scene and firemen cut the trapped and unconscious Sparkman from his car. He was transported to Kosciusko Community Hospital, Warsaw, and later airlifted to Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne, where he was being treated for head injuries. Sparkman was listed in critical condition this morning.
Toxicology reports from this accident were not yet available. Officers at the scene reported Sparkman smelled strongly of alcohol and the gas station clerk told police Sparkman had trouble opening and shutting his car door and staggered when he walked.
The accident remains under investigation by the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department.
