Wednesday, July 31, 2002
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Wednesday, July 31, 2002 |
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PTC Chief on crusade after high-speed chase kills man By JOHN MUNFORD and MONROE ROARK
Angered by a 100 mph fatal chase that began and ended outside his jurisdiction, Peachtree City Police Chief James Murray is calling on President George Bush and Gov. Roy Barnes to help limit such police pursuits. Murray is calling on President Bush "to put together a national panel of elected officials to examine" the issue. He also wrote to Gov. Barnes and asked that state law be changed to limit police pursuits. "This high-speed police chase carnage has to stop," Murray wrote the governor. Murray was reacting to the death of a Peachtree City man, killed Saturday night when a woman fleeing Luthersville police crashed into his white minivan at the eastern city limits, according to the Georgia State Patrol. The complete text of Murray's letter to Barnes can be found on Page 5A of today's edition. Norman Charles Vicha, 41, was killed instantly when the collision occurred at 7:25 p.m., said Gordy Wright of the Georgia State Patrol. Vicha was attempting to turn left onto Ga. Highway 54 East when a Ford Explorer struck his vehicle on the driver's side, according to witnesses, Wright said. Witnesses also told troopers that Vicha had the green light when the collision occurred, Wright added. It took 20 minutes to remove all of the victims from their vehicles, according to the Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services. The driver of the Ford Expedition, Loraine McCrary, 37, of Jonesboro, was airlifted to Grady Memorial Hospital in critical condition, Wright said. Although GSP investigators found evidence of alcohol being present in the vehicle, it will be several weeks before blood alcohol results will be available, Wright said. McCrary remained in critical condition as of noon Tuesday. The chase began in Luthersville in Meriwether County, southwest of Peachtree City, where McCrary drove away when a police officer tried to make a traffic stop. She was pursued by two Luthersville officers about 20 miles before the collision in front of the Peachtree East shopping center at the intersection of Ga. Highway 54 and Broken Bow Drive, at the eastern edge of Peachtree City. Three children who were in McCrary's vehicle also were injured, although all three wore seat belts, Wright said. Tonisha Millens, 7, was the most seriously injured of the three and was airlifted to Scottish Rite Hospital, where she remained in serious condition as of noon Tuesday. Jermaine Millens, 6, and Diandre Millens, 1, were both treated and released from the hospital for their injuries, Wright said. The 1-year-old was secured in a car seat, Wright added. There were no passengers in Vicha's vehicle, according to the FCDFES report. The crash is still under investigation by the GSP, with its Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team on the case. The team plans to revisit the scene later this week and take measurements to try and determine what occurred during the collision, Wright said. After the separate investigations of the trooper and the team are complete, the GSP will present its case to the Fayette County District Attorney's office to determine which charges will be prosecuted, Wright said. A representative of the DA's office was on the scene Saturday night to assist with the investigation, Wright added. Troopers had trouble identifying McCrary since they found several papers in the vehicle listing her name in several different varieties, Wright said. Those papers also had conflicting dates of birth listed for McCrary, he added. Those leads, and others, will likely be followed up on by other police agencies, Wright said. This is the second death this year in Fayette County resulting from a motorist's attempts to escape police. Union City veterinarian Jason Andrew Trotman was killed March 31 in Fayetteville when his vehicle was struck at a traffic light by two men fleeing police after a robbery of a local grocery store. Officers in Peachtree City were busy trying to block intersections and keep innocent motorists and bystanders from being involved, Murray wrote. Police in Peachtree City have one the most restrictive police chase policies in the state, he added. "The theory that failure to chase would send the word that you can run from police does not hold water," Murray wrote. "That is why police have radios. In most cases, suspects will find a way to leave the vehicle once they feel they can get away without being caught." Although Luthersville officials did not specify the reason for the initial stop of McCrary or why the chase began, Murray said in the letter that it involved leaving the scene of an accident and a suspicion of driving under the influence.
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