Police pursuit of a man into Hull ends on beach; 11 charges lodged

A man from Boston’s Roslindale neighborhood was arrested on numerous charges after driving away from a police officer and leading them on a pursuit into Hull. The chase ended when the car reached the ocean, drove onto a rocky beach, and became stuck. No one was injured.

On Tuesday, Dec. 15, at 2:33 a.m., an officer noticed a car that had driven off the road and was stuck in brush and trees on Hingham’s Charles Street. He approached to see if anyone was inside and to investigate the crash. The driver was alone. He was not wearing pants and was holding a lighter. He asked the driver to lower his window so they could speak. The driver yelled through the closed window that he would move the car. He put the car in drive and began accelerating, sharply turning the steering wheel, in an attempt to free the car. As the officer continued to yell for him to stop and open the window, the car lurched forward and began sliding. The officer jumped back to avoid being struck.

The driver was able to free the car and quickly drove away. The officer attempted to catch up to the car but lost sight of it when it reached Main Street (Route 228).

Another police officer saw the car leaving Blaisdell Road. It turned left onto Main Street, heading north at a high rate of speed with the headlights off. As the fleeing car approached another car heading northbound, it slowed, then passed it, and continued northbound. The pursuit was then called off for safety reasons.

An officer then saw what appeared to be fire from the undercarriage of the speeding car as it continued north some distance ahead of him. The car had its headlights on. Officers were then authorized to restart the pursuit.
The car drove off the road on Main Street near Hobart Street, almost hitting a fire hydrant. It pulled back on the road and continued north on Main Street. It headed north on Route 228 and turned left onto Canterbury Street, then turned right onto Rockland Street toward Hull and Cohasset. The car struck a median at the intersection of Rockland Street and Hull Street, damaging the front tire. The car turned left and continued into Hull.
A short time later, the front tire came off the car and the tire almost struck the Hingham cruiser. The car continued driving on the front rim through Hull until it reached the dead end at Pemberton Point. The car then drove off the road onto a rocky beach and sharply turned to avoid the ocean. It drove for a short distance on the rocks until it became stuck.

Officers could see that the driver was holding what appeared to be a crack (cocaine) pipe in one hand and an open beer in his other hand. He was arrested without further incident with the assistance of the Hull police. Officers found a black BB gun hidden in a pair of pants on the front passenger seat and several empty whiskey bottles in the center console.

Arrested was Joshua L. Johnson, 34, of 865 American Legion Highway, Apt. 5G, Roslindale. He was charged with: operating under the influence of alcohol; operating under the influence of drugs; negligent operation; leaving the scene of a property damage crash; possession of a Class B substance (cocaine in pipe); failure to stop for police; unlicensed operation; open container of alcohol in vehicle; speeding; marked lanes violation; and stop sign violation. He also had a default warrant outstanding for assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

He was booked at the Hingham police station and was ordered held without bail overnight. He was arraigned in Brockton District Court on Dec. 15. (Hingham District Court was temporarily closed). In court, his bail was revoked on several open cases, and he was ordered held without bail. Bail was set at $2,500 cash on the Hingham charges.

Hull police and Norwell police had assisted Hingham officers.