Officer Collides with Vehicle During Chase through Seminole County

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on November 14, 2018

Recent reports from the Orlando Police Department shed some light on an incident that happened on Thursday, November 7th, and resulted in the hospitalization of two individuals. From these reports, it came out that one of the main people involved in the emergency vehicle accident was an officer with the Orlando Police Department, and that, furthermore, the officials in charge of the investigation are looking into whether or not this officer was the responsible party for some of the events.

It was during the afternoon of the above mentioned Thursday when officers working with a fugitive team first located a 21-year-old individual who was believed to be responsible for an armed robbery. It is not clear if the robbery had taken place earlier on that same day or if it was something that happened sometime previous.

After identifying the suspect, officers began to pursue them, eventually making their way to State Road 434 in an attempt to get the suspect to stop fleeing. The suspect and at least one officer then left Orange County and entered Seminole County.

The officer with the Orlando Police Department that chased the fleeing vehicle into Seminole County was, apparently, so focused on the chase that they failed to keep an eye on the roadway around them. It was as they neared the intersection of Forest City Road and Gateway Drive that this lack of awareness provided disastrous.

At the intersection, another motorist was on the road parallel to the one down which the officer was traveling. The light turned green for this other motorist and they began to drive through the intersection. It is not clear if the pursuing officer had activated their emergency lights at this time, but we do know that the patrol vehicle ran the red light as they attempted to catch up to the fleeing car. This caused the patrol car to collide with the vehicle that had the green light. In the following moments, one of the cars flipped over and both sustained serious damage. The solo occupants of these two cars were also injured, and the officer and the civilian were transported from the scene to nearby hospitals where they were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

The suspect being chased by the police officer was not captured.

Sources:

• Orlando officer involved in crash while pursuing armed robbery suspect

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.