Woman accused of taking stolen ambulance on joyride

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT/Gray News) - A woman is accused of stealing and going on a joyride with an ambulance that she stole from a hospital, WKYT reports.

Police say Jericha Hays, 43, stole an ambulance parked outside of Saint Joseph East in Lexington, Kentucky, on Sunday.

Camarian Dickey says she and her friends were nearly hit by Hays.

“We felt a rush of air, really loud, like a car going by. We turned around, and there was an EMT swerving into the bike lane,” Dickey said.

She says the ambulance was “out of control.”

“And that gurney was about to roll out of the back,” Rowyn Moore said.

The friends say they feel lucky because it was a “close call.”

The ambulance had just been sent on a patient transfer when it was stolen.

Director Sherwin Corder says the crew was walking out of the hospital when they were distracted by a woman asking questions when Hays allegedly jumped in the driver’s seat and took off.

“It took a crew that we desperately need out of circulation. Also, an ambulance which is still drivable, but it had to be taken down and inspected,” Corder said.

Police say Hays ignored a number of traffic laws, drove the wrong way down a one-way street and almost hit people from downtown Lexington to the Walmart where she was arrested.

Hays is now charged with a half dozen offenses, including theft and wanton endangerment.

Police say she manifested “extreme indifference to human life.”

“She didn’t even honk. The only honk we heard was from a lady who was turning, and she stopped to ask us if we were OK,” Dickey said.

Corder says the ambulance was checked and should be back in service by Tuesday. He also says they are going to ensure all ambulances have anti-theft devices from now on.

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