Windsor police say a bizarre crash over the weekend followed accusations of assault and theft.
A 16-year-old boy remains in critical condition in hospital after being run down by an SUV and pinned against the wall of a home in east Windsor Saturday. Police say, however, that this incident was the culmination of a series of occurrences that began earlier in the afternoon.
Sergeant Steve Betteridge said officers were called shortly after 2:30 p.m. Saturday to a restaurant near Tecumseh Mall for a report of an assault. A 33-year-old woman told police she was assaulted by the boy, and that the reported assault was the result of a confrontation over property. The teen had left before police arrived. The woman refused to co-operate further with police and left the scene in her vehicle, a red Dodge Nitro.
Shortly after 3 p.m., a report came in about a pedestrian collision on Hawthorne Drive. Emergency crews noticed a teenage boy pinned against the wall by a red Nitro and rushed him to hospital. Betteridge said officers recognized the driver as the woman from the previous call for service.
Witnesses told police, and posted on social media accounts, that the woman had allegedly hit the boy on purpose. The woman, identified by police as Maria Chouinard of LaSalle, was arrested and charged with attempted murder. This charge has yet to be proven in court.
The WPS Major Crimes Unit is investigating the incident. Anyone with information who has not already spoken with police is asked to call Windsor police at (519) 255-6700, ext. 4830. Anonymous tips can be submitted online to Crime Stoppers or phoned in at (519) 258-TIPS (8477).
