Teen driving Tesla at ‘excessive speed’ causes crash that kills 2, injures 3 others: cops
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A teenager driving a Tesla “at a high rate of speed” caused a multi-car crash Sunday at a Broward intersection, which killed two people, hospitalized three others and closed the roads in the area, authorities said Monday.
The crash occurred shortly before 2:30 p.m. at the intersection of Northwest 27th Avenue and Sixth Street just outside Fort Lauderdale, according to Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Michael Kane. Fire rescue and Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the scene.
At the crash site, paramedics aided the five injured adults, all of whom were transported to Broward Health Medical Center. Two were declared dead at the hospital. Police did not identify them.
Gavin Dorvil, 19 of Lauderdale Lakes, was driving his 2023 Tesla Model 3 “at a high rate of speed” westbound on Northwest Sixth Street toward the intersection of Northwest 27th Avenue when he struck the driver’s side of a 2023 Dodge Durango, which was traveling through the intersection, according to the sheriff’s office.
The crash’s impact caused the Durango to hit a 2024 Chevrolet Trax, which rolled over onto its roof, BSO said.
The Tesla and Durango kept going until they crashed through a fence surrounding a cemetery, said BSO spokesman Carey Codd.
BSO paramedics took the injured to Broward Health Medical Center, where the driver of the Durango and one of its two passengers died, Codd said. Another passenger was in critical condition as of Monday, according to the sheriff’s office.
The sheriff’s office has not identified those three people.
Deputies identified the driver of the Trax as Jasmyne Thomas, but did not release her age or medical condition, citing victims’ privacy laws.
As of Monday, Dorvil had not been arrested. Detectives believe “excessive speed” was a factor in the crash, but, based on their preliminary investigation, they do not believe Dorvil was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
“The investigation into the circumstances of the crash is ongoing,” Codd said.
Previous charges of Tesla driver
Dorvil has pending charges of grand theft of a firearm, carrying a concealed firearm, and resisting an officer without an arrest, court records show.
On July 15, Dorvil was a passenger in a Honda Accord that was pulled over for speeding in Davie. When officers asked all the car’s occupants to step out, Dorvil ran away. Officers caught up with him and found a stolen firearm shoved down his pants, his arrest report states.
He has an arraignment date set for Aug. 19.
In January 2023, Dorvil had a traffic infraction for careless driving that was dismissed in December.
Miami Herald reporter Milena Malaver contributed to this report.
This story was originally published August 11, 2024 at 7:34 PM.
