Teen shot after chase on Interstate 95

A state trooper shot and wounded a 16-year-old boy early yesterday after he led the troopers on a high-speed chase on Interstate 95 then tried to run them over, state police said.

Shortly before 3 a.m., cops said, two state troopers observed a silver Dodge Caravan committing several driving violations while traveling north on I-95, according to a news release from the state police.

Troopers tried to pull over the 16-year-old driver, but the teen took off up the highway then exited at Bridge Street, police said.

A short distance away, the car stopped and the troopers exited their patrol car then approached the vehicle, the release stated.

The driver then threw the minivan into reverse and tried to run the officers over but one of them fired a shot at the car, wounding the driver and stopping the car.

The 16-year-old was taken to Hahnemann University Hospital in stable condition, said Trooper Danea Durham, a state police spokeswoman. Two other teens who were in the minivan were taken into custody.

"It's unfortunate when anybody tries to flee but in this instance, unfortunately, not only did the operator try to flee but when they were cornered they decided they were going to try to get out of the situation any way that they could," Durham said.

The troopers "were very lucky that they weren't run over," she said.

It was unclear what charges the driver and his passengers would face. Their names were not released because of their age, she said.