MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A judge has ordered a mental evaluation for a woman charged after Memphis Police said she stole an ambulance, ran over a person’s foot, then crashed into a brick wall and another ambulance.
Tanya Thomas is charged with aggravated assault, intentionally evading arrest, and theft. She is currently in the Shelby County Jail on a $30,000 bond.
According to Memphis Police, an officer was answering a call at Regional One Hospital about 10:15 p.m. Monday, July 8, 2024, when several nurses told him Thomas was stealing a Memphis Fire Department ambulance. The officer said Thomas was in the ambulance and ran over one person’s right foot, then hit a brick wall.
Crittenden County EMS posted to Facebook that after Thomas reversed into the brick wall, she put the ambulance in drive and sped toward another wall outside the trauma ICU area. Crittenden EMS said she swerved to miss a security guard and wall, put the ambulance into reverse again, then hit their own ambulance.
At that point, Memphis Police said Thomas took off in the ambulance with officers chasing her. Investigators said she stopped minutes later behind the VA Hospital nearby, and that’s when she was taken into custody.
