A Herndon woman was taken into custody after a Sunday morning car chase that began in Sterling and finally came to an end outside Leesburg. The pursuit started shortly after 3 a.m. when a Sheriff's Deputy on routine patrol noticed the taillights were out on vehicle heading westbound on Route 7 near Sterling Boulevard.
The deputy attempted to pullover the car near Potomac View Road but the driver, later determined to be Amy Chandler, 42, continued down the roadway and began to accelerate.
According to the Sheriff's Office, the woman then ran a red light at the intersection of George Washington Boulevard and then attempted to turnaround near Battlefield Parkway. The car continued westbound as a Leesburg Police cruiser came to assist in the pursuit on eastbound Route 7.
Members of the Leesburg Police Department set up a stinger tire deflation device across the roadway near Cardinal Park Drive, which caused the driver-side tires to deflate. The woman continued into the town of Leesburg where she ran several more red lights and almost struck two cars including a police cruiser, according to the Sheriff's Office. The driver made her way to southbound Route 15 where she lost control of the car and struck a tree near Route 704. The car fishtailed and came back into the roadway where it overturned coming to rest on the vehicle's roof.
Several members of the Sheriff's Office pulled the driver from the vehicle, which at this time had a small fire spreading from the engine. Other members of the office worked to extinguish the flames until fire-rescue could arrive. Chandler was taken to Loudoun Hospital where she was being treated. Warrants for felony eluding and a summons for defective taillights have been obtained.