A man from Milwaukee has been sentenced to 11½ years in prison by Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Glenn H. Yamahiro for causing a crash during a police chase that resulted in a school bus overturning. Additionally, Elijahwan H. Shabazz will serve eight years of extended supervision upon his release from prison. The judge expressed that the November crash, which caused multiple injuries but no fatalities, was one of the most severe cases of reckless driving he has witnessed during his tenure of over 20 years on the bench. While no children were on the bus, the 72-year-old bus driver sustained injuries requiring medical treatment.
Shabazz, aged 27, entered a guilty plea in June to charges including first-degree recklessly endangering safety, neglecting a child, eluding an officer, hit-and-run involving injury, and bail jumping. The incident unfolded when law enforcement officers in Milwaukee suspected Shabazz’s vehicle to be linked to a homicide investigation in Chicago and attempted to initiate a stop. Shabazz fled from the officers, resulting in a pursuit that culminated in a collision between his car and a school bus. The impact caused the bus to tip over and collide with several other vehicles.
Amongst those injured were a 3-year-old child in Shabazz’s car who sustained a facial laceration, a 26-year-old passenger in the vehicle, and the driver of another car involved in the crash. There is no indication that Shabazz was connected to the Chicago homicide under investigation, according to Assistant District Attorney Matthew Torbenson.
