NILES TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — An Indiana man who was involved in a chase in a stolen car and then stunned by a police officer following a crash just inside the Michigan border has died, Berrien County investigators say.
Darrell Goodwin, 45, of South Bend, died at the hospital Tuesday.
The Berrien County Sheriff’s Office says that on the afternoon of Sept. 14, a South Bend police officer spotted Goodwin driving a stolen car and tried to stop him. Investigators say Goodwin took off, leading the officer on a chase into Michigan. Officers from Roseland, a South Bend suburb, and the St. Joseph County, Indiana, Sheriff’s Office joined the pursuit.
The stolen car hit another vehicle on S. 11th Street north of State Line Road in Niles Township, the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office said. The suspect driver lost control and crashed into a traffic sign. Berrien County deputies say the suspect then ran away. Officers gave chase, following him behind a nearby business. Ultimately, an officer used a Taser on Goodwin.
Goodwin was taken to a South Bend Hospital, where he later died. The cause of his death wasn’t immediately clear — an autopsy was scheduled for Thursday.
The sheriff’s office said it was investigating and would turn over its findings to the Berrien County prosecutor.