Wife of man killed by Baltimore Police cruiser speaks out
BALTIMORE -- The family of a man on a scooter who was struck and killed by a Baltimore police cruiser is speaking out one day after the Independent Investigations Division of the Office of the Attorney General released a video showing the moment he was hit.
The family of 58-year-old Terry Harrell, accompanied by their attorneys, accused officer Alexis Acosta—who was driving the patrol cruiser—of being reckless.
Video From June 21 showed Harrell riding his scooter down North Milton Avenue. He approached the intersection at East Biddle Street just as Acosta was approaching the intersection.
The graphic video shows Acosta's cruiser collide with Harrell and his scooter.
The officer's body camera captured him frantically calling for help.
"I got into an accident, I got into an accident," Acosta could be heard saying in one portion of the video. "I got into a crash, I got into a crash. Send me an ambulance immediately."
Officials say Acosta was on his way to a call for a stabbing and his siren and lights were activated.
But Harrell's family and their attorney say the officer was reckless because he sped through a red light.
WJZ reviewed the officer's body camera footage which showed the officer had a red light less than a second before the collision.
WJZ obtained a police training bulletin that says in part "Any intersection controlled by a stop sign, yield sign, or a yellow or red traffic light requires a complete stop if the emergency vehicle operator cannot account for all visible traffic in all lanes."
"This is a tragedy that was clearly avoidable had Officer Acosta just followed the rules," Alex Binder, who represents Harrell's family, said. "We're in the process of working with the government entities to get to the bottom of this but you can believe that we will be fighting very hard for justice and making sure that justice, transparency and accountability will be served."
An email from the Baltimore City Police Department said, "Per agency protocol, Officer Acosta has been placed on routine administrative duties, pending the outcome of the investigation."
The Attorney General's Office is investigating this deadly crash that involved Officer Acosta. The Baltimore City Police C.R.A.S.H Team is also assisting.
Vernia Harrell and Terry Harrell were together for 34 years and married for 21. She said her family is devastated by the loss.
"This is what I have left," she said as she referenced a necklace with her husband's picture. "His daughters—who's going to walk them down the aisle? We got to think about all this stuff. It's not just short-term, it's long-term. He has taken my best friend."