Shorewood police pursuit, crash; 2 charged, wanted for smash-and-grabs

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Kelsey Oliver and Cachita Smith

SHOREWOOD, Wis. - Two people have been criminally charged in connection to a police chase of a stolen SUV that started in Shorewood and ended with a crash into the Milwaukee River on Tuesday morning, Feb. 25.

27-year-old Kelsey Oliver, of Florida, faces the following charges:

• 1st-Degree Recklessly Endangering Safety (2 counts)
• Operating a Vehicle to Flee/Elude an Officer, Causing Bodily Harm or Property Damage (2 counts)
• Resisting or Obstructing an Officer

43-year-old Cachita Smith, of Georgia, faces one count of possession of methamphetamine.

Stolen SUV crashes into Milwaukee River

Initial traffic stop

What we know:

According to the criminal complaint, on Feb. 25, just after 11 a.m., a Shorewood police officer was near Morris and Capitol when an ALPRS (Automatic License Plate Reader) got a hit on a stolen vehicle. The vehicle was a silver Jeep Wagoneer and showed it was stolen, according to the Grand Chute Police Department, and also wanted in several smash-and-grabs around that area.

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The officer followed the vehicle until another squad was able to join in for a high-risk traffic stop. Once the other squad was present, they activated their squad lights and sirens and the vehicle pulled over near Richards and Abert in the City of Milwaukee.

The complaint goes on to say that the officer got out of his squad and drew his firearm to conduct a high-risk stop on the vehicle. The driver, later identified as the defendant, Kelsey Oliver, rolled down the window and looked out at the officer. The officer commanded Oliver to turn the vehicle off and throw the keys out of the window, but Oliver did comply  and kept asking "what's the problem." The officer issued the command again and, at that point, Oliver put the vehicle in drive and fled southbound on Richards Street.

Pursuit and crash

What we know:

The complaint goes on to state that a pursuit ensued. The pursuit lasted about two miles and involved the vehicle reaching speeds of 75 mph on city streets, speeding through a Walmart parking lot, driving into the oncoming lanes of traffic, and running a stop sign. The pursuit ended when the vehicle drove through a residential driveway and fence, and crashed into the Milwaukee River.

Suspect vehicle in the Milwaukee River

The complaint goes on to say that a woman got out of the passenger door, later identified as the other defendant, Cachita Smith, followed by Oliver. Police ordered both Smith and Oliver to stop. Smith stopped but Oliver kept running south along the river bank. Officers checked the surrounding area but were unable to find Oliver at that time, but he was arrested at a later date.

When police searched the vehicle, they found multiple credit cards listed to several different people, UnitedHealthcare cards listed to different people, and a marijuana grinder.

Police searched Smith, who revealed her State of Arizona Prisoner ID Card. During the search of her purse, officers found three bags of suspected marijuana and pills that tested positive for methamphetamines, per the complaint.

Wanted for other crimes

The backstory:

Shorewood police were later contacted by a West Bend detective who said that the suspect vehicle was wanted by several different agencies for smash-and-grabs and that the suspects were originally from Florida.

A check of the Wagoneer revealed that it was rented from Enterprise Rental in Tulsa, Oklahoma and was never returned, and was listed as stolen. The Wagoneer was damaged by the pursuit and crash, per the complaint.

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Court proceedings

What's next:

Both Kelsey Oliver and Cachita Smith had their initial appearances in court on March 5. Cash bond was set at $25,000 for Oliver, and $1,000 for Smith.

Both are due back in court on March 14 for their preliminary hearings.

Court information notes that Smith is also wanted in the State of Pennsylvania, and has a status conference related to her extradition scheduled for March 26.