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ORANGE BEACH, Ala. -- Police chased a reckless driver along the Beach Highway at speeds reaching more than 100 miles an hour.
Who was behind the wheel? Police say it was an 11-year-old girl, who is now charged with driving under the influence.
An Orange Beach police officer found himself in hot pursuit of a red Chevy Monte Carlo shortly after 10:30 Tuesday night.
"Our training tells us when someone flees like that to treat them like a felon, because they're apparently running for some reason," said Assistant Police Chief Greg Duck.
As the car began weaving through traffic, more officers joined in the chase.
With July 4th the next day, it was one of the resort city's busiest nights of the year.
"There were a lot of people still going out for dinner. We had a concert going on that night so we had a lot of people out," said Duck.
The chase wound through town to the Beach Highway, where the car sideswiped a pick-up truck, but the driver kept going.
One officer reported reaching a speed of 112 miles an hour.
Finally, the driver lost control as she entered Gulf Shores. The vehicle turned over multiple times and came to rest in a sand dune.
It was then that officers learned that the driver was eleven years old and had been drinking prior to the chase.
The girl was taken to the hospital for treatment of minor injuries. She was charged with D.U.I., speeding, leaving the scene of an accident and attempting to elude police.
But officers say the outcome could have been much worse. "She was under the influence of alcohol and she handled the car very well there at times," said Duck.
The girl lives in Cantonment, FL but was staying in Perdido Key at the time of the incident.
The case has been turned over to juvenile authorities.
