A grandmother is dead and a Miami Beach cop injured after crash during stolen car chase
A Miami Beach woman was killed late Monday night after a Miami Beach police officer, chasing a stolen car, crashed his police SUV into her car, Miami Beach police said Tuesday morning.
Miami Beach police said Tuesday night they believe they’d detained the car thief, but an arrest hadn’t been made yet.
Miami Beach Police Chief Daniel Oates said if captured, he’ll face charges of auto theft, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer and felony murder.
Both 68-year-old Ivonne Reyes and the officer, whom police did not identify, were taken to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital after the crash near 76th Street and Byron Avenue in North Beach, said Miami Beach police spokesman Ernesto Rodriguez.
Reyes, a mother, grandmother and aunt, who lived nearby, died at the hospital. The officer remains at Jackson in stable condition with head and chest injuries.
During a Tuesday morning press conference, Oates said that after the crash, an officer in a police cruiser was hit by the stolen car. The officer was treated for whiplash and released from the hospital.
Miami Beach’s pursuit policy, created in 2000 and revised in 2009, lays out eight points on the decision to pursue. The first five of which are:
▪ “Pursuits shall be initiated only when an officer has a reasonable belief that a violent felony has been or will be committed. All other pursuits are prohibited.”
▪ “A violent felony involves violence or the threat of violence to another person. Such crimes include murder, manslaughter, kidnapping, armed robbery, sexual battery, aggravated battery, aggravated assault or any other felony which includes the use or threat of physical force or violence to a person.”
▪ “Engaging in a pursuit is tantamount to the decision to use deadly force.”
▪ “Officers and supervisors shall use their judgment based on their training and experience when and if a decision to pursue is undertaken.”
▪ “In reaching the decision to pursue, officers and supervisors shall consider if the seriousness of the offense warrants a pursuit, whether the need for apprehension justifies a pursuit and if a pursuit under the existing conditions presents an unreasonable hazard to life and property.”
Oates was asked about whether the pursuit was in line with department policy for car chases.
“That’s all part of the investigation,” Oates said. “Generally our policy is we pursue for violent felonies. But the totality of the pursuit, all the circumstances and all the officer’s actions, they are part of a larger investigation as to what occurred.
“But I want to remind everyone, OK, this all started with a dangerous individual stealing a car and driving recklessly through our city.”
This is not the first time a person was killed as the result of a police car chase in South Florida.
In 2013, four people were killed by SUV-driving Willie Dumel as he drove the wrong direction — north — on Interstate 95’s southbound lanes. Opa-locka fired Officer Sergio Perez on the grounds of “pursuing a vehicle the wrong way on the highway,” according to his personnel records.
Dumel was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but was released in November 2017 and is on probation.
In August 2009, Exzavier Robinson, with passenger Keenya Young, raced from police after shoplifting Michael Kors purses at Macy’s in Aventura Mall. Robinson smashed his Chrysler 300 into 40-year-old Emily Anderson’s car. Anderson died. Her passenger survived after being in a coma.
Robinson was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Young was also convicted and will be out of prison in 2021.
Miami Beach City Manager Jimmy Morales issued a statement Tuesday about Monday’s crash: “It’s a sad day for our community as we mourn the loss of a North Beach resident and two injured police officers due to the result of a stolen vehicle late last night.
“We would like to offer our deepest condolences and heartfelt prayers to the family of the victim of this tragic accident. There are no words that can undo the tremendous pain and suffering, but the City of Miami Beach is offering all its support to the family during this difficult time.”
The incident began around 11 p.m. Monday near 74th Street and Collins Avenue, Oates said, when a 2008 blue BMW was stolen while the owner was inside a store (keys were still in the car). Oates said a police officer saw the BMW around 11:50 p.m. near 76th Street and Dickens Avenue. The thief didn’t stop. Another officer saw the stolen car on 76th Street and gave chase. Within two blocks, that officer’s SUV struck Reyes’ Honda.
Oates said the thief continued on into Surfside, where he rammed a Beach police patrol car while the officer had a gun pointed at him. He rammed another Beach police car later before ditching the BMW near a 53rd Street beach walk.
The car thief is described as a black male of medium build with a white baseball cap, white shirt and khaki shorts, police said.
Anyone with information can call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS (8477).
This story was originally published March 26, 2019 at 7:19 AM.
