There are car chases. And there are car chases where the criminals throw a hamburger at a TMZ Tour bus. On April 7, 2016, we witnessed the second kind. It was a chase so extraordinary, so self-aware, so social media age, that we cannot let this rotten husk of a year pass without acknowledging its place in history. (Disclaimer: car chases are bad, never drive away from police, because that is bad, and don’t commit crime so you can be on TV, also bad.)
Let’s do some donuts down Memory Lane…
The 90-minute chase started, as they do, with police in pursuit of two burglary suspects in Cerritos. Yawn. Wait. HOLD ON. What’s happening here? Why is the convertible top halfway down in the rain? Why is the passenger standing up in his seat like he’s actively participating in the driving of the vehicle? You, sirs, have our attention.
Look at these guys driving with their top down in the rain. Car chase now on #KCAL9 pic.twitter.com/CcJcrvHPin
— Amber Lee (@AmberLeeNews) April 7, 2016
Rather than drive to Mexico and start new lives as law-abiding valets, our guys exited the freeway in Hollywood, drove for a bit on the Walk of Fame and ran red lights. In other words, they seamlessly blended into local traffic.
Pursuit suspects passed a KTLA photographer on Hollywood Blvd- driver gave peace sign pic.twitter.com/1mbZ7TCm88
— Tara Finestone (@tarawallis) April 7, 2016
The public, watching all of this unfold on television, and possibly drunk, had been won over.
GREATEST #PURSUIT OF ALL TIME! 🔥🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/AssLsPIv9S
— Andrew Martin (@Marty_Digital) April 7, 2016
You may have noticed the precipitation. You may also be aware of a literary concept called Chekhov’s Gun.
WATCH: Burglary suspect performs donuts on Hollywood Boulevard while being chased by authorities. pic.twitter.com/M1kGONNJW0
— CBS Los Angeles (@CBSLA) April 7, 2016
Here it is. The moment we all realized we’re going to be talking about this car chase forever. A TMZ tour bus tries to save the day and is pelted with a hamburger (or possibly a sandwich) for trying to dispense sweet highway justice.
.@TMZ trying to come to the rescue!?!?! This #Pursuit could not get more #Hollywood!!!! pic.twitter.com/ND8BVcLDKU
— Gadi Schwartz (@GadiNBC) April 7, 2016
The TMZ bus at least slowed the guys down a little, unlike this police officer (throwing a spike strip) who may or may not be the quarterback of the Rams right now.
Back to spike strip throwing school for you, sir. pic.twitter.com/b9N57OFOnu
— Andy St.Clair (@stclairandy) April 7, 2016
RELATED: How High-Speed Car Chases Became a Citywide Pastime in Los Angeles
Now, there are a few ways this can end. A crash. A hail of gunfire. Or, with these guys, in line for hot dogs at Pink’s. If you guessed any of those, you were wrong. They drove home and waited to be arrested.
I’ve never seen a police chase end with the driver just sitting on the car shaking hands with friends.#what #LAChase pic.twitter.com/6j9nERN3Wk
— Adam Racusin (@AdamRacusin) April 7, 2016
L.A police pursuit suspects chill out with no police in sight. The atmosphere can be described as relaxed. pic.twitter.com/6d96vDm5oR
— Hector Becerra (@hbecerraLATimes) April 7, 2016
Driver Herschel Reynolds, 20, and Isaiah Dewayne Young, 19, were sentenced to two years in prison in October. These were their last moments of freedom, which they spent taking selfies.
Relive the whole spectacle…
Joe Donatelli is the Senior Writer at Los Angeles magazine. You can follow him on Twitter @joedonatelli and Facebook. He wrote: The 100 L.A. Things Every Angeleno Needs to Do.
