‘Innocent people being affected’: deadly police chases raise concerns

The death of a 72-year-old man killed in Phenix City during a recent police chase raises new questions about the Columbus Police Department’s pursuit policy, some in the community say.

Frank McLemore, a beloved husband, father and grandfather from Smiths Station, died June 3 after a stolen vehicle being chased by Columbus police slammed into his car at the intersection of Crawford Road and 17th Street.

McLemore and his wife, Erin, were taken to Columbus Midtown Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead a few hours later. His wife remains at the University of Alabama-Birmingham Hospital, where she’s being treated for multiple injuries.

Dezhaun Shynotez Dumas, the 18-year-old who allegedly drove the stolen vehicle, has been charged in Alabama with murder, assault in the second degree, and bringing stolen property across state lines.

McLemore’s case is just the latest deadly chase to occur in the community. Since April of 2016, four people have been killed in Columbus police-chase related incidents, and at least eight people have been injured. Two of those killed, and at least three injured, were innocent bystanders.

David Pollard, then the head baseball coach at Carver High School, was killed on April 18, 2016, when a stolen Audi being chased by police slammed into his Chevrolet sedan and knocked the car into a truck at the intersection of Buena Vista and Andrew Roads. The family has filed a lawsuit against the city of Columbus for $13 million.

“I think it’s just another example of why we should change our policies,” said Katonga Wright, an attorney representing the family of Pollard, reacting to McLemore’s death. “It’s not just going after the bad guy. You also have to look at the fact that there are innocent people who are being affected and lives are being lost. I don’t know if it’s worth the effort or worth the risk if innocent people are going to be affected.”

The city is also facing a possible lawsuit from the family of Christian Redwine, who was shot by a police officer after a chase. Police said Redwine was driving a stolen Pontiac G-6 on Nov. 6, 2016. He crashed near the Phenix City exit on Riverchase Drive. Officer Allan Brown believed Redwine was trying to run him over when Redwine shifted the car in reverse, according to police accounts, so he shot him.

A Russell County grand jury concluded that the officer committed no wrongdoing. On June 1, the family’s attorney, Steve Couch, said he had submitted an ante litem notice to the city concerning the incident. Couch, co-founder of Couch & First LLC in Hoover, Ala., said the lawsuit would be filed after he received more evidence, including dash camera footage from the scene.

In a Friday interview with the Ledger-Enquirer, Couch said he has handled a lot of police chase cases over the years, and many cities have changed their policies and practices as a result. He said the cases are based on federal statute that protects individuals’ civil rights and ensures that they’re not being violated by an employer or governmental entity.

“I don’t know much about Mr. McLemore’s case, but sounds to me like the Columbus Police Department does need to revisit its policies and probably ramp up its training in terms of whether officers should or should not continue a pursuit through any given area,” he said. “I’ve had those policies and procedures change in different cases that I’ve been involved in, be it Mississippi or Utah.

“While you’re trying to keep crime off the streets, at the same time, you don’t endanger the lives of innocent people in the process,” he said, “especially when the alleged crime certainly doesn’t appear to be one where someone else is going to possibly get hurt.”

At a recent Columbus Council meeting, Community Activist Antonio Carter recounted each recent incident, said the police department was “out of control” and warned the city of future lawsuits. In addition to the cases involving Pollard, Redwine and McLemore, he mentioned the case of a fourth individual, Deonte Marces Giles.

Giles, a murder suspect in an April 1 shooting on Ticknor Drive, lost control of his vehicle on May 18 during a high-speed chase that ended on Cusseta Road. During the chase, Giles struck a female pedestrian who was taken to Midtown Medical Center for injuries to her left leg, and then released.

At the end of the chase, Giles got out of his car and was struck and killed by a patrol car after the officer driving, according to reports, saw Giles point his weapon at another officer.

In a Dec. 2, 2016 incident, four people were injured in another Columbus police chase, one of them a bystander.

Christopher Keith Floyd was being pursued on warrants for probation violation and traffic citations when he allegedly led police in a car chase in a white Nissan Altima. The chase ended when Floyd crashed into a burgundy Chrysler 200 at the intersection of Buena Vista Road and Lockwood Court.

The Chrysler driver and three suspects were transported to Columbus Midtown Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

Maj. J.D. Hawk, who oversees patrol services at the CPD, said the department has a pursuit policy with guidelines for when officers should or should not pursue a suspect.

“Each one of our pursuits is documented and reviewed,” he said. “And if there are any violations of our pursuit policy we take correction on it.”

The policy, obtained by the Ledger-Enquirer, states: “The purpose of a motor vehicle pursuit is the apprehension of a suspect who refuses to voluntarily comply with the law requiring him to stop. The primary goal of the Department is the protection of lives and property. To the extent that a motor vehicle pursuit exposes any officer, suspect, or member of the general public to an unnecessary risk of harm or injury, then the pursuit is inconsistent with that goal.”

“It is the policy of the Columbus Police Department that a motor vehicle pursuit is justified ONLY when the necessity of immediate apprehension outweighs the level of danger created by the pursuit,” the policy further states. “This policy will serve as standard for any punitive action that may be taken when the officer violates these requirements.”

When a pursuit is initiated, officers must immediately report it to the dispatcher, stating reason for pursuit, description of fleeing vehicle, location and direction of pursuit, speeds involved, occupant information and road conditions, including any vehicle and pedestrian traffic congestion. The dispatcher is then responsible for notifying the unit’s sergeant and watch commander.

“The unit’s sergeant shall continuously review the incoming information to determine whether the pursuit should be continued or terminated,” the document states. “... The pursuing officer must constantly consider the risk created by the pursuit. He should not needlessly endanger other persons.”

Hawk said there are a lot of situations for which officers don’t initiate pursuits, such as minor violations. But police are there to enforce the law, and they’re just doing their job, he explained.

“Somebody comes in and robs you, puts a gun to your head, or steals your car, and a police officer comes out there, what’s the citizen going to say when the police officer doesn’t try to apprehend the persons?” he asked. “We don’t get into these chases with any intent or any desire for anybody to get hurt, and that’s why we have some guidelines that lessen the possibility for that to happen.”

He said officers are also trained for pursuit situations, and most of the accidents are caused by people violating the law.

“All of our officers have to go to emergency vehicle operation courses,” he said. “If they don’t pass that course, they’re kicked out of our police academy until they can get to a level where they can pass the course.”

When asked whether the guidelines were followed in recent incidents, Hawk said the cases are still under investigation.

Wright, the attorney representing the Pollard family, said the issue “got to a different level when the chase turned into an accident, which caused the death of someone who was loved and committed to helping people in our community.”

“All of us want to be protected,” Wright said, “but when it costs so much in human life and value, is it really worth the chase? And we say no.”

This story was originally published June 10, 2017 at 6:31 PM with the headline "‘Innocent people being affected’: deadly police chases raise concerns."