No charges against law enforcement in fatal police pursuit crash in Wicomico
No charges will be brought against any law enforcement officers after the conclusion of an investigation into a fatal crash during a Salisbury police chase, the Office of Attorney General announced Friday.
The Independent Investigations Division of the Office of Attorney General released its investigative report about the Oct. 21, 2021, police pursuit crash that ended in the death of Jamaal Parish Mitchell, 35, of Salisbury.
The investigative report contains detailed investigative findings and an analysis of relevant legal issues. The report does not make any recommendations as to whether an officer should or should not be charged.
The Independent Investigations Division concluded its investigation and forwarded its investigative report to the Wicomico County State’s Attorney’s Office on Feb. 14. The Wicomico County State’s Attorney’s Office notified the division on April 21 of its decision not to prosecute this case.
The report details the Independent Investigations Division's findings based on a review of physical evidence, crash scene analysis, autopsy reports, video and audio recordings, officers’ written reports and personnel records for the officers involved, according to the report. The division also interviewed civilian witnesses, responding officers and the paramedic who attended to the driver.
What happened in the police pursuit
At about 10 p.m. Oct. 21, Private First Class Christopher Denny of the Salisbury Police Department noticed a car at the intersection of Delaware Avenue and West Salisbury Parkway that did not have its lights on and was swerving, the release states.
Initial reasoning for the stop as detailed in the report is consistent with dashboard video from Denny's marked police cruiser. The Honda driven by Mitchell turned left onto Route 50 west. Denny followed, activating his emergency lights. Mitchell’s speed was not measured, however, the cruiser reached a maximum speed of about 72 mph while maintaining several car lengths between vehicles, according to the report.
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While on Route 50, Mitchell's car swerved across the dotted white lane line to his right several times, according to the report, twice straddling the rightmost and second rightmost lanes.
After initial attempts at a traffic stop failed, a pursuit was supervisor-approval to continue because of the concern the driver was impaired, according to the Independent Investigations Division report. There is no evidence suggesting Denny was previously familiar with either Mitchell or the Honda, the report states.
Sheriff's deputy joined pursuit
About two minutes after the pursuit began, the driver turned onto Queen Avenue, struck a Wicomico County Sheriff's Office cruiser and kept going, according to the attorney general's office.
Wicomico County Sheriff's Deputy David Munir had been on patrol about a mile away and had stopped at this intersection to assist. There is no evidence Munir obtained supervisor approval before pursuing Mitchell, the report states.
The report shows the driver struck a second vehicle at the intersection of Queen Avenue and Duchess Drive, causing the driver to lose control. The Honda entered a yard on Duchess Drive, struck a parked car and then hit a tree, about 18 seconds after first turning onto Queen Avenue.
Denny’s body-worn camera video shows the exchange at Duchess Drive in which officers tried to contact the driver, tried to open the stuck door and radioed "Subject’s unconscious," according to the report.
Denny radioed: “We need EMS (emergency medical services) out here immediately. Driver’s unresponsive. Trapped.”
Attempts were made to bend the window frame to enter the vehicle to render aid. A front passenger door was eventually opened, and Mitchell's pulse was checked and EMS arrived on scene. The attorney general's office said the driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
Deputy First Class Christian Pecoraro of the Wicomico County Sheriff's Office later observed the crashed Honda’s speedometer was stuck between 70 and 80 mph, the report states.
Mitchell’s autopsy was conducted the following day and identified Mitchell’s cause of death as: “multiple Injuries” with the manner of death to be: “accident.”
A toxicologist's report found Mitchell’s blood alcohol concentration to be 0.25%. No other drugs were identified in a urine sample.
By law, the Independent Investigations Division’s report must remain confidential until the State’s Attorney’s Office declines to prosecute or any related prosecution is completed. If the local state’s attorney declines to prosecute, the division will release the report, with appropriate redactions for confidentiality, within 30 days of that determination.
This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Fatal Wicomico police pursuit crash: No charges vs. law enforcement
