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VINEYARD — A man allegedly fleeing from police was saved by the same officers trying to stop him Thursday after the man's SUV plummeted 20 to 25 feet off of a bridge in Vineyard and burst into flames after hitting the ground.
Two Orem police officers who had been following the SUV pulled the driver, Dustin Scott Butterfield, 35, of Salt Lake City, out of the burning vehicle, said Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Spencer Cannon. Another officer moved his patrol car between the burning vehicle and the victim who was being treated by officers to prevent the flames from spreading to them.
Butterfield was taken to a local hospital and was not believed to be in life-threatening condition, Cannon said. After he is released from the hospital, he was expected to be booked into the Utah County Jail for investigation of DUI and failing to stop for law enforcement.
The dramatic series of events began about 8:30 a.m. in Provo when police spotted a vehicle that witnesses said was driving erratically, he said. The SUV fled from police, and officers pursued Butterfield for a moment before ending their chase and notifying other officers to be on the lookout for him.
A short time later in Orem, the SUV hit a FedEx truck, Cannon said. Just before 9 a.m. the the vehicle was spotted by a sheriff's deputy in Vineyard and the deputy attempted to pull Butterfield over.
"The vehicle continued eastbound on Center Street and ran the red light at Center Street and Vineyard Road. It continued up the overpass where it left the roadway to the south, crashing at the bottom near the railroad tracks," the Utah County Sheriff's Office said in a prepared statement.
Butterfield was taken to a local hospital in serious condition.
Cannon said Butterfield has an "extensive" criminal history and was on parole at the time of the crash.
Butterfield was convicted of failing to stop for police, reckless driving and interfering with an arrest in 2019. In 2006 he was convicted of aggravated assault in a stabbing incident and sentenced to one to 15 years in the Utah State Prison, according to court records. In 2004 he was convicted of an amended charge of attempted disarming of a police officer and two counts of assault on a police officer and was ordered to serve a term of one to 15 years in prison.VINEYARD — A man allegedly fleeing from police was saved by the same officers trying to stop him Thursday after the man's SUV plummeted 20 to 25 feet off of a bridge in Vineyard and burst into flames after hitting the ground.
Two Orem police officers who had been following the SUV pulled the driver, Dustin Scott Butterfield, 35, of Salt Lake City, out of the burning vehicle, said Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Spencer Cannon. Another officer moved his patrol car between the burning vehicle and the victim who was being treated by officers to prevent the flames from spreading to them.
Butterfield was taken to a local hospital and was not believed to be in life-threatening condition, Cannon said. After he is released from the hospital, he was expected to be booked into the Utah County Jail for investigation of DUI and failing to stop for law enforcement.
The dramatic series of events began about 8:30 a.m. in Provo when police spotted a vehicle that witnesses said was driving erratically, he said. The SUV fled from police, and officers pursued Butterfield for a moment before ending their chase and notifying other officers to be on the lookout for him.
A short time later in Orem, the SUV hit a FedEx truck, Cannon said. Just before 9 a.m. the the vehicle was spotted by a sheriff's deputy in Vineyard and the deputy attempted to pull Butterfield over.
"The vehicle continued eastbound on Center Street and ran the red light at Center Street and Vineyard Road. It continued up the overpass where it left the roadway to the south, crashing at the bottom near the railroad tracks," the Utah County Sheriff's Office said in a prepared statement.
Butterfield was taken to a local hospital in serious condition.
Cannon said Butterfield has an "extensive" criminal history and was on parole at the time of the crash.
Butterfield was convicted of failing to stop for police, reckless driving and interfering with an arrest in 2019. In 2006 he was convicted of aggravated assault in a stabbing incident and sentenced to one to 15 years in the Utah State Prison, according to court records. In 2004 he was convicted of an amended charge of attempted disarming of a police officer and two counts of assault on a police officer and was ordered to serve a term of one to 15 years in prison.
