Stalled car leads to police crash

SOUTH BEND – A police officer is recovering from bruises and cuts today after a late-night accident that caused his sport utility vehicle to flip over. According to St. Joseph County police, the accident occurred just before 11 p.m. Wednesday on Mayflower Road between Indiana 23 and the U.S. 20 bypass, when a Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by 36-year-old Sgt. Paul Moring crashed into a stalled vehicle that was partially in the road. Sgt. Bill Redman, St. Joseph County police spokesman, said the stalled car, a gold 1994 Saturn, belonged to 17-year-old Anna Hullinger of South Bend. Police said Hullinger’s car apparently ran out of gas and that she tried to pull it to the side of the road as she waited for a family member to bring her fuel. Because of a large ditch on the east side of the road, Hullinger’s vehicle remained partially on the road, police said. Redman said the area is typically very dark at night and lacks streetlights. While Hullinger waited in her car, Redman said, she apparently turned off her lights and did not activate her flashers, making her vehicle difficult to see. The collision caused Moring’s vehicle to roll over on its roof before landing upright on all four tires. Moring, a detective in South Bend’s Metro Special Operations Section, was wearing a seat belt, and his vehicle’s airbags deployed. Hullinger, who police said was not wearing a seat belt, and her vehicle were pushed into the ditch. Police said she also received minor injuries in the accident, including cuts to her head. Capt. Phil Trent, South Bend police spokesman, said the Jeep Moring was driving is a department-owned vehicle used by officers in the MSOS division, which investigates drug cases throughout the county. The vehicle does not have lights, sirens or any other markings indicating that it is a police vehicle. Moring was on duty during the accident. Trent said it’s not clear how fast Morning was traveling, but he said there’s no indication that he was going above the 55 mph speed limit. Trent also said there were no skid marks on the pavement, indicating that Moring didn’t see the Saturn until his Jeep crashed into it. Both Moring and Hullinger were taken to the hospital for medical treatment. Redman said standard procedures required Moring to be tested for drugs and alcohol, although there were no indications that he was impaired. Staff writer Dave Stephens: dstephens@sbtinfo.com (574) 235-6209