Fleeing motorcyclist charged in Trooper's death
Nov 3, 2005 19:37:10 GMT -5
Post by desmo2 on Nov 3, 2005 19:37:10 GMT -5
Motorcyclist charged in trooper's death
DAYTONA BEACH -- A motorcyclist accused of speeding and causing the death of a Florida Highway Patrol trooper who wrecked his cruiser in an attempt to catch him was formally charged Monday by the State Attorney's Office.
The charges lodged against Donald Williams include aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide and fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer. Williams, 39, is from Seffner, near Tampa.
Trooper Darryl Haywood of Palm Coast was killed Oct. 2 minutes after he spotted Williams racing east on Interstate 4 between DeLand and Daytona Beach, FHP officials said.
After seeing the motorcyclist, Haywood, who was heading west on I-4, turned around and tried to catch up to Williams, but his patrol car collided with another automobile after the right rear tire either blew or came apart, and the vehicle skidded off the highway into a tree.
Haywood, 49, joined the Florida Highway Patrol in March 2000 after serving with the New York City Police Department for 20 years.
Williams has been held without bail since Oct. 2 at the St. Johns County Detention Center in St. Augustine.
Trooper drove too fast on I-4, watchdog says
But the Florida Highway Patrol says the late officer did nothing wrong.
As troopers dug through knee-deep mud for the personal effects of a fellow officer killed while chasing two drag-racing vehicles, a Winter Park law-enforcement consultant on Monday criticized state police pursuit policy as too vague and said the trooper's decision to chase the speeding vehicles unnecessarily endangered other drivers and himself.
Florida Highway Patrol on Monday also released audio tapes of the call from a motorist reporting the drag-racing vehicles and the call from Trooper Darryl L. Haywood to dispatchers confirming his sighting of the dueling motorcycle and car as they sped along Interstate 4 in Volusia County.
Investigators think the right rear tire on Haywood's 2002 Chevrolet Camaro tore apart Saturday after he crossed the median and sped up to more than 100 mph in an attempt to overtake the vehicles -- a 1999 Suzuki 1300 motorcycle and a red Porsche 911. The failed tire sent his car careening into another vehicle before leaving the roadway and crashing into a tree, investigators said.
"There's no reason to be going 100 or 150 mph to catch up to a guy on a motorcycle. The most common scenario is that he's going to get away," said Jim Phillips, who has tracked police-pursuit issues on his Web site PursuitWatch.org since his daughter was killed in Orlando during a high-speed chase in 2001.
"We shouldn't be giving hokey justifications."
Phillips acted as a key consultant for the Orange County Sheriff's Office and Orlando Police when the two agencies overhauled their pursuit policies to make them more restrictive.
Shamir Suber, who crashed into the car of Phillips' daughter Sarah as he tried to flee Orange County sheriff deputies, was sentenced to 45 years in jail on Monday for her death.
FHP spokeswoman Kim Miller on Monday defended both the agency's policy and Haywood's actions.
"This was not a pursuit. The trooper did nothing wrong," Miller said. "He was trying to overtake the vehicle."
A pursuit does not begin until an officer "overtakes" or catches up with a vehicle, Miller said, and the driver sees the flashing lights and hears the sirens but refuses to stop.
The Porsche 911 said to be involved in the race had not been located as of Monday. The driver of the Suzuki motorcycle, Donald Williams, 38, of Seffner, remained in St. Johns County Jail on Monday on charges of aggravated fleeing and eluding and reckless driving. Those charges were filed after Williams was observed by a trooper speeding at more than 150 mph northbound on I-95.
Police have not determined whether Haywood, 49, of Palm Coast, ever gained sight of Williams or the Porsche after deciding to give chase.
FHP pursuit policy, similar to policies for the Orange County Sheriff's Office and Orlando Police, prohibits all vehicular pursuits except when a violent offender may be involved.
"In the old days cops used to chase until they ran out of gas. But the way we do business now is totally different," Steve Jones, chief spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Office, said. "We only chase for violent crime because pursuits are so dangerous. It makes for a safer community."
The trend across the nation is toward fewer situations where law-enforcement officers are allowed to chase suspects at high speeds, Jones said.
Craig Morse, a former police academy classmate of Haywood, said Haywood always showed the highest degree of professionalism in his police work. Morse and several other officers spent Monday at the accident site west of the I-95 interchange near Daytona Beach digging through the mud for Haywood's belongings. They found an unframed photo of Haywood and his wife.
"He wasn't one of those people who'd look at someone and say, 'I'm going to get him.' He wasn't that way," Morse said. "He was professional, just the kindest, gentlest human being I've ever known."
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Perhaps, just perhaps, the prospect of being charged with manslaughter if anyone is killed while attempting to elude police will deter a few of these punks from twisting the gas when the red and blues come on!
DAYTONA BEACH -- A motorcyclist accused of speeding and causing the death of a Florida Highway Patrol trooper who wrecked his cruiser in an attempt to catch him was formally charged Monday by the State Attorney's Office.
The charges lodged against Donald Williams include aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide and fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer. Williams, 39, is from Seffner, near Tampa.
Trooper Darryl Haywood of Palm Coast was killed Oct. 2 minutes after he spotted Williams racing east on Interstate 4 between DeLand and Daytona Beach, FHP officials said.
After seeing the motorcyclist, Haywood, who was heading west on I-4, turned around and tried to catch up to Williams, but his patrol car collided with another automobile after the right rear tire either blew or came apart, and the vehicle skidded off the highway into a tree.
Haywood, 49, joined the Florida Highway Patrol in March 2000 after serving with the New York City Police Department for 20 years.
Williams has been held without bail since Oct. 2 at the St. Johns County Detention Center in St. Augustine.
Trooper drove too fast on I-4, watchdog says
But the Florida Highway Patrol says the late officer did nothing wrong.
As troopers dug through knee-deep mud for the personal effects of a fellow officer killed while chasing two drag-racing vehicles, a Winter Park law-enforcement consultant on Monday criticized state police pursuit policy as too vague and said the trooper's decision to chase the speeding vehicles unnecessarily endangered other drivers and himself.
Florida Highway Patrol on Monday also released audio tapes of the call from a motorist reporting the drag-racing vehicles and the call from Trooper Darryl L. Haywood to dispatchers confirming his sighting of the dueling motorcycle and car as they sped along Interstate 4 in Volusia County.
Investigators think the right rear tire on Haywood's 2002 Chevrolet Camaro tore apart Saturday after he crossed the median and sped up to more than 100 mph in an attempt to overtake the vehicles -- a 1999 Suzuki 1300 motorcycle and a red Porsche 911. The failed tire sent his car careening into another vehicle before leaving the roadway and crashing into a tree, investigators said.
"There's no reason to be going 100 or 150 mph to catch up to a guy on a motorcycle. The most common scenario is that he's going to get away," said Jim Phillips, who has tracked police-pursuit issues on his Web site PursuitWatch.org since his daughter was killed in Orlando during a high-speed chase in 2001.
"We shouldn't be giving hokey justifications."
Phillips acted as a key consultant for the Orange County Sheriff's Office and Orlando Police when the two agencies overhauled their pursuit policies to make them more restrictive.
Shamir Suber, who crashed into the car of Phillips' daughter Sarah as he tried to flee Orange County sheriff deputies, was sentenced to 45 years in jail on Monday for her death.
FHP spokeswoman Kim Miller on Monday defended both the agency's policy and Haywood's actions.
"This was not a pursuit. The trooper did nothing wrong," Miller said. "He was trying to overtake the vehicle."
A pursuit does not begin until an officer "overtakes" or catches up with a vehicle, Miller said, and the driver sees the flashing lights and hears the sirens but refuses to stop.
The Porsche 911 said to be involved in the race had not been located as of Monday. The driver of the Suzuki motorcycle, Donald Williams, 38, of Seffner, remained in St. Johns County Jail on Monday on charges of aggravated fleeing and eluding and reckless driving. Those charges were filed after Williams was observed by a trooper speeding at more than 150 mph northbound on I-95.
Police have not determined whether Haywood, 49, of Palm Coast, ever gained sight of Williams or the Porsche after deciding to give chase.
FHP pursuit policy, similar to policies for the Orange County Sheriff's Office and Orlando Police, prohibits all vehicular pursuits except when a violent offender may be involved.
"In the old days cops used to chase until they ran out of gas. But the way we do business now is totally different," Steve Jones, chief spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Office, said. "We only chase for violent crime because pursuits are so dangerous. It makes for a safer community."
The trend across the nation is toward fewer situations where law-enforcement officers are allowed to chase suspects at high speeds, Jones said.
Craig Morse, a former police academy classmate of Haywood, said Haywood always showed the highest degree of professionalism in his police work. Morse and several other officers spent Monday at the accident site west of the I-95 interchange near Daytona Beach digging through the mud for Haywood's belongings. They found an unframed photo of Haywood and his wife.
"He wasn't one of those people who'd look at someone and say, 'I'm going to get him.' He wasn't that way," Morse said. "He was professional, just the kindest, gentlest human being I've ever known."
---------------------------------------------------------
Perhaps, just perhaps, the prospect of being charged with manslaughter if anyone is killed while attempting to elude police will deter a few of these punks from twisting the gas when the red and blues come on!
