BALTIMORE, MD (February 26, 2022) – The Independent Investigations Division (IID) of the Office of the Attorney General is investigating a fatal crash following a traffic stop and police pursuit that occurred Saturday morning in Montgomery County.
At approximately 1:30 a.m., a Montgomery County police officer observed a car commit a traffic violation in the area of Rockville Pike and Nicholson Lane in North Bethesda. The officer conducted a traffic stop on the car and while he was at the car, the driver drove away. The officer pursued the car. During the pursuit, the driver lost control of the car and crashed in the 3600 block of Randolph Road in Wheaton. The driver, an adult female, was pronounced dead on the scene. The passenger, an adult male, was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries and was treated and released. No other vehicles were involved in the crash.
The IID is investigating this incident with assistance from the Maryland State Police Crash Team.
The IID will generally release the name of the involved officers within 48 hours of the incident, though that period may be extended if an officer is injured, or if there is a specific reason to believe that an officer’s safety is at risk.
The officer’s body-worn and dashboard cameras and microphone were activated during the incident. The IID will generally release body camera footage or dashboard camera footage within 14 days of an incident. There may be situations where more than 14 days is necessary, including if investigators need more time to complete witness interviews, if there are technical delays caused by the need to redact the identities of civilian witnesses, or to allow family members to view the video before it is released to the public.
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At approximately 1:30 a.m., a Montgomery County police officer observed a car commit a traffic violation in the area of Rockville Pike and Nicholson Lane in North Bethesda. The officer conducted a traffic stop on the car and while he was at the car, the driver drove away. The officer pursued the car. During the pursuit, the driver lost control of the car and crashed in the 3600 block of Randolph Road in Wheaton. The driver, an adult female, was pronounced dead on the scene. The passenger, an adult male, was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries and was treated and released. No other vehicles were involved in the crash.
The IID is investigating this incident with assistance from the Maryland State Police Crash Team.
The IID will generally release the name of the involved officers within 48 hours of the incident, though that period may be extended if an officer is injured, or if there is a specific reason to believe that an officer’s safety is at risk.
The officer’s body-worn and dashboard cameras and microphone were activated during the incident. The IID will generally release body camera footage or dashboard camera footage within 14 days of an incident. There may be situations where more than 14 days is necessary, including if investigators need more time to complete witness interviews, if there are technical delays caused by the need to redact the identities of civilian witnesses, or to allow family members to view the video before it is released to the public.
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