Court briefs: Off-duty Gary firefighter accused in crash with state trooper, tell me about this news in (https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/09/14/court-briefs-off-duty-gary-firefighter-accused-in-crash-with-state-trooper/)
15-09-2026
On September 14, 2026, an off-duty Gary firefighter was arrested following a hit-and-run crash involving an Indiana State Police (ISP) patrol vehicle.Incident Details
- The Collision: Around midnight, an ISP trooper (identified as Trooper Garcia) was seated in a fully marked Dodge Durango with emergency lights flashing, conducting traffic control for a highway work zone on southbound Interstate 65 near the I-80/94 interchange. A dark-colored SUV struck the squad car and fled the scene.
- The Pursuit: Troopers spotted the suspect vehicle heading westbound on I-80 with heavy front-end damage. The driver refused to pull over, initiating a pursuit through an active construction zone where road crew workers were forced to dodge out of the way. The driver then ran traffic signals along Broadway and 25th Avenue in Gary, nearly causing another collision.
- The Stop and Arrest: The pursuit ended near a Gary Fire Department station at 25th Avenue and Jefferson Street. The driver was identified as 47-year-old Michael D. Rodriguez, an off-duty Gary firefighter.
- Injuries: The struck trooper sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was transported by Gary Fire Department paramedics to Northlake Methodist Hospital for medical evaluation.
- Impairment Evidence: Officers observed open alcohol containers inside Rodriguez’s vehicle, and he admitted to consuming alcohol prior to driving. Rodriguez refused standardized field sobriety and breath tests, prompting troopers to secure a judicial search warrant for a blood draw at Southlake Methodist Hospital.
- Pending Charges: Rodriguez was booked into the Lake County Jail. The case was forwarded to the Lake County Prosecutor’s Office with recommended charges, including:
- Level 6 felony reckless driving in a construction zone while intoxicated
- Level 6 felony leaving the scene of an injury crash
- Level 6 felony operating while intoxicated (OWI) causing injury
- Multiple Class A and Class C misdemeanor counts related to reckless driving and OWI endangerment