Portland Man Accused Of Stealing Car With Child In Back Jailed

PORTLAND, OR — The man who police say stole a car with.a child inside, leading the child's father to ram the car, is charged with kidnapping, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, and failure to perform the duties of a driver. His name is Justin E. Hill and he was moved over the weekend to the Multnomah County Detention Center from the hospital where he was treated after the incident.

It was just after 8 a.m. on Friday. Officers from the North Precinct got a call to head to a home on the 4000 block of Northeast 16th Avenue.

A man – now identified as Hill – had jumped into a running car and sped off. Inside the car was the child of a woman who had turned her back for a moment. She yelled. Her husband who was right there, jumped in his car and gave chase.

By the intersection of Northeast 21st Avenue and Multnomah Street, dad crashed his car into his wife's car.

Police say that as Hill jumped out, the dad ran to his wife's car to check on their child, who was ok. Neighbors, seeing the incident, approached and asked what had happened.

They started chasing Hill who was running away on foot.

One person used his car and was able to pin the suspect against a fence while others held him until police arrived.

Police say that Hill was injured while being detained and was taken to a hospital.

Detectives believe that some people might have recorded the incident on their phones. If so, they're asked to contact Detective Chris Traynor at Christopher.Traynor@portlandoregon.govor 503-823-0451.