The deaths of two teenage girls are the latest fatalities among hundreds every year related to accidents involving police pursuits. National Highway Transportation Safety data reveals there were 455 such deaths in the U.S. in 2020.
It was a tragically high price to pay for catching a suspected car thief: two innocent teenagers dead and a police officer jailed, facing serious charges for a car crash that resulted from the pursuit.
The Louisiana case is unusual in that the local prosecutor says the officer, 42-year-old David Cauthron, acted so recklessly that he should face charges and is preparing to ask a grand jury to consider bringing them. "In my experience, I have not seen a police officer charged criminally in a police pursuit case," said Chicago civil rights attorney Andrew Stroth, who has handled numerous lawsuits in such cases but has no ties to the Louisiana collision.
"Sirens and police vehicles do not give an officer the authority to cut through a red light," Clayton wrote, adding that evidence so far indicates Cauthron was "grossly negligent." Authorities say Zanders drove back across the river and was arrested in Baton Rouge, where he is charged with car theft, home invasion and aggravated flight.
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