Crime & Safety
Fatal Crash Victim, Officers IDed After Man Fleeing Police Wrecks On I-695: AG
A fatal crash victim and officers were identified. Officials said a man fled police onto I-695 and hit an oncoming driver, who died.
WINDSOR MILL, MD — Officials on Wednesday identified the woman who died earlier this week after a Baltimore Beltway crash with a man fleeing police. Authorities also released the names of the officers involved in the chase, which stopped before the fatal wreck.
Investigators identified the late woman as 37-year-old Dimeka Thornton of Windsor Mill.
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said the Baltimore County Police Department officers involved in the chase were:
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- Sgt. Ferguson, a 19-year veteran
- Officer Daley, a 17-year veteran
- Officer Marrero, a 7-year veteran
- Officer Hadel, a 7-year veteran
- Officer Creter, a 4-year veteran
All are assigned to the Operations Bureau.
The officers spotted a car reported stolen in a hotel parking lot in the 1800 block of Belmont Avenue in Windsor Mill around 12:15 a.m. Monday, Brown said.
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The attorney general said officers saw a man enter the car soon after.
Brown said authorities tried to pull the car over, but the man did not comply, sparking a police chase that lasted several minutes.
The attorney general said the man drove the wrong way up the Exit 18 ramp, heading from Liberty Road onto the outer loop of Interstate 695.
Brown said officers didn't follow the man onto the beltway and into oncoming traffic.
The man went into oncoming traffic and struck a car head-on, the attorney general said.
Brown said that driver, a woman who wasn't involved in the chase, was pronounced dead soon after at an area hospital.
The man who fled police was also hospitalized, the attorney general said, noting that he's expected to survive.
None of the officers were hurt.
Brown's Independent Investigations Division is handling the case, as it does with all police-related deaths.
Body camera video, which recorded the encounter, is usually released within 20 business days. This can also be delayed for technical reasons or to conduct additional interviews and let relatives view the footage before it's released.
This map shows the area where Brown said the crash happened.
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