SHELBY COUNTY, Tenn. — Seven teens are in trouble after deputies said they were joyriding in a stolen car, refused to stop for deputies, then crashed in front of a home in Southeast Shelby County.
“I was asleep in the bed. My alarm went off at like 3:45 a.m.,” said Kaylia Green.
That wasn’t the noise though that got her out of bed.
“Later on, me and my boyfriend heard a crash, and we jumped up to see someone hit my car,” Green said. “There was another car flipped over in the yard and blue lights flashing.”
Green said she later learned from deputies seven teens between 13 and 17 years old went joyriding in a stolen car Tuesday morning.
A deputy said he noticed them when they ran a stop sign.
“Put his blue lights on, and they wouldn’t pull over. They didn’t speed. They went about 25 mph,” said sheriff’s spokesperson Earle Farrell.
The chase lasted a couple of minutes until they got to Berkley Woods Drive.
“My car was parked in the street. When they came around the corner, it’s like they slid and pushed my car enough to smash the car in front of me,” she said.
Deputies said the 16-year-old driver went to the hospital for minor injuries, then to Juvenile Court where he faces a list of charges including theft and driving without a license.
The other teens were charged with violating curfew and not wearing a seatbelt.
Neighbors said it could have been a lot worse.
“It could have been someone going to work. It could have killed somebody. That’s bad,” said neighbor Donna Campbell.
Car parts, glass and crumbled cement remain scattered on the scene.
Green said she doesn’t know how she’ll get to work now, but hopes this is a lesson learned.
“People just need to keep a better eye on their kids,” she said.
WREG reached out to some of the parents of the teens for their side of the story, but have yet to hear back.
We also found out from deputies the car was reported stolen in Memphis a few days ago.