A multistate car chase that lasted nearly an hour and crossed two states ended with more than a dozen police officers subduing the driver on live TV.
Officers from the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department began pursuing Robert G. Ellis, a man who was wanted in connection with a string of recent thefts. Indiana State Police were forced to join the chase when Ellis crossed state lines.
Helicopter footage captured the suspect leading police into Indiana across grassy patches and baseball fields. Ellis eventually drove over several police spike strips, causing him to swerve into a nearby field with as many as 22 police cars following him. The police drew their guns as they approached the truck and pulled Ellis out. The video then shows a few of the officers punching and kicking Ellis.
On Friday, the suspect's mother, Connie Voignier told WLKY in Kentucky that she was upset about the force used to arrest Ellis.
She watched the live pursuit and said she prayed for him to pull over.
"When I first started watching the chase on TV, my first thoughts were, 'Lord, let them stop him,'" Voignier told WLKY.
When the pursuit ends, Ellis can be seen raising his hands in an apparent attempt to surrender.
"Even after he surrendered, they were willing to beat the living daylights out of my son," Voignier told WLKY.
Ellis was charged with fleeing/resisting law enforcement, and police found multiple handbags in his truck. According to first responders, he complained of pain while being transported to the hospital.
According to WKLY, Ellis had a black eye during his court appearance Friday.
His arrest is currently under review.
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