Judge orders McAlester man to trial in police pursuit death

McALESTER, Okla. (AP) – A McAlester man has been ordered to stand trial on a first-degree murder charge after a woman was killed while police pursued his pickup truck last fall.

The McAlester News-Capital reported Friday (http://bit.ly/1MGWd6f ) that 37-year-old Michael Crawley is charged in the death of Amber Brewer, a 34-year-old woman killed on Nov. 5. Police say she was run over by Crawley’s truck as police chased it after receiving a burglary call.

Detectives say the chase started after officers from McAlester and Krebs checked out a storage unit. They said in November that a man in a pickup truck rammed a patrol vehicle before leading police on a 15-minute chase.

Prosecutors say Crawley caused Brewer’s death.

After Thursday’s court hearing, Crawley told reporters that police vehicles ran over Brewer.