Prosecutor: Crash that killed UC student 'completely preventable'

Twelve days before police say a 17-year-old driving a stolen vehicle struck two University of Cincinnati students in a crosswalk, killing one, he was ordered to surrender to authorities in Northern Kentucky, according to court documents.

He never did, the documents say.

“The child will voluntarily turn himself in tomorrow in Boone County,” Hamilton County Juvenile Court Magistrate Liz Igoe said in an order signed Sept. 15. The teen and his mother had appeared that day by video for a hearing surrounding multiple gun charges he faces.

The crash near UC’s campus that killed 18-year-old Cayden Turner and seriously injured another student happened the afternoon of Sept. 28.

Court documents also say that the teen cut off an electronic ankle monitor he was required to wear after being released from the county youth detention center on the gun charges. The documents don’t specify when he did that, but on Sept. 20 – eight days before the fatal crash – an official filed a motion in juvenile court saying the teen had violated the conditions of his release and noted that his whereabouts were unknown.

According to court documents, the teen lives with his mother, stepfather and younger siblings.

It’s not clear whether law enforcement was actively looking for the teen at the time of the crash. A Boone County sheriff’s spokesman did not respond to a message Tuesday.

The Enquirer is not naming the teen. His criminal record dates back to 2018, when court documents say he was 12. In March 2018, he was one of multiple juveniles who documents say “jumped” someone. He was convicted of misdemeanor assault.

Teen involved in 2021 chase that injured deputy

In October 2021, he was one of four juveniles who court documents say were involved in a police chase that led to a Boone County sheriff’s deputy being seriously injured.

In that incident, the teen and the other juveniles were in a stolen sport utility vehicle, fleeing deputies, according to the documents.

The chase ended up on U.S. 42 near Florence, Kentucky. Documents say the SUV with the juveniles inside “intentionally swerved toward” Lt. Chris Hall, who had set up stop sticks on an overpass and was standing by the median when he was struck.

Hall suffered injuries including a fractured leg.

The documents say juveniles involved told investigators that they intentionally struck Hall as they tried to flee.

On June 1, the teen pleaded guilty as a juvenile in Boone County to complicity to assault and complicity to receive stolen property. He was sentenced to probation.

3 weeks after probation sentence, gun arrest

Three weeks later, on June 21, Cincinnati police arrested him in Walnut Hills. Documents say he had a loaded Glock handgun “at his feet” in a car. He faces multiple gun charges in that incident.

Because those charges led to a probation violation in Boone County, the teen was ordered on Sept. 15 to turn himself in the following day.

Amy Clausing, a spokeswoman for the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office, said the 17-year-old should never have been released from detention. It’s yet another example, she said, of the unintended consequences of the recent push for pretrial release of defendants.

“It’s incredibly frustrating, and I can imagine particularly heartbreaking for the family of Cayden Turner,” Clausing said. “This was completely preventable.”

“When we identify a violent offender, we have to have the capacity to keep the public safe,” she said. “There is a system in place to identify dangerous people and do something about it. And that’s what’s failing.”

The teen's connection to Hall's pursuit also links him to an auto theft ring that one police chief said "hit every city in Northern Kentucky" It was this group that created a stir on social media last year after a Warren County judge allegedly called them "ruthless" in a warning to his own staff.

At a hearing Monday in Hamilton County Juvenile Court, prosecutors filed a motion seeking to have his case transferred to adult court. He is being held at the county youth center. Court documents say he was driving a stolen Honda CR-V. A Smith & Wesson handgun was found inside the vehicle.

Cameron Knight contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Prosecutor: Crash that killed Cayden Turner 'completely preventable'