Authorities: Woman drives off in police car in Fla.

[March 22, 2011]  RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- Authorities say a Florida woman who was handcuffed by police and placed on the back seat of a patrol car managed to drive off in the cruiser, crashing it blocks away.

Police in Riviera Beach said Monday that officers responded to a weekend call of a possible sexual assault, but the woman who complained appeared to be suffering from a mental illness. Authorities say police were still investigating Sunday afternoon when the handcuffed woman squeezed through the window to the front seat and drove off, crashing into a pickup truck soon after.

Both the woman and pickup driver were taken to a hospital, but the extent of any injuries was not clear. It's unclear what charges the woman might face. The Associated Press doesn't identify possible victims of sexual assault.

[Associated Press]

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