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Teen Driver Stopped For Marijuana Tries To Flee Cops, Fatally Runs Over Pedestrian
By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 11, 2015
Modified Mar 11, 2015
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By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 11, 2015
Modified Mar 11, 2015
Share
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The NYPD says they pulled over a teen driver in Crown Heights around midnight Monday morning after detecting the smell of marijuana wafting from the vehicle, but the young man sped off, killing a pedestrian in the ensuing chase. Cops stopped driver Raymond Ramos, 18, at Sterling Place and Schenectady Avenue, to "conduct an investigation of the vehicle," according to an NYPD spokesman, who confirmed that marijuana was part of the investigation. But police say Ramos sped off as cops approached the car.
Ramos was behind the wheel of a Volkswagon Passat with two other occupants; they all sustained non-life threatening injuries when Ramos subsequently collided with another motorist at the intersection of St. John's Place and Nostrand Avenue. According to investigators, both vehicles careened onto the sidewalk, where Ramos's car hit 21-year-old Dave Jones. Jones sustained severe head trauma and was rushed to Kings County Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The other driver, who was behind the wheel of a Nissan, also sustained non-life threatening injuries.
Ramos, who lived just six blocks away from Jones, was arrested and slapped with a slew of charges: Criminally Negligent Homicide, Vehicular Assault, First Degree Reckless Endangerment, Fleeing Officer in Motor Vehicle, Unauthorized Use of Vehicle, and Traffic Device Violation.
In 2013, a teen driver fleeing police on the Upper West side killed 4-year-old Ariel Russo. That death, and others that were the unintended side effects of police pursuits, have elicited criticism from some safe streets advocates, who say the NYPD needs to take more care to avoid dangerous high-speed pursuits. The NYPD patrol guide "requires that a vehicle pursuit be terminated whenever the risks to uniformed members of the service and the public outweigh the danger to the community if [the] suspect is not immediately apprehended."
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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