A mother of three is still fighting for her life after being hit by a suspected DUI driver during a police pursuit in South Los Angeles in February.
Yolanda Reyna, 43, was on her way to a concert in Inglewood when Dashawn Sutton, 43, driving a stolen black GMC pickup truck, ran a red light on San Pedro Street and collided with her car on Gage Avenue. Reyna was rushed to the hospital for treatment and remains in a coma.
New body camera footage of the arrests of Sutton and his passenger was recently released by the Los Angeles Police Department.
The pursuit began when Sutton fled during an attempted traffic stop in the area near Florence Avenue and Main Street. Both Sutton and the passenger were taken into custody after the crash.
According to a GoFundMe campaign for Reyna, “The suspects had no regard to human life and this could have happened to anyone. Unfortunately, Yolanda was severely injured.
Yolanda has three children, the youngest being 12 years old. The money raised will go towards medical expenses and any other expenses for the family since they will need to provide for the 12-year-old as Yolanda was a single mother and his sole provider.”
This tragic incident is one of several recent pursuits that have resulted in injuries and deaths. Just hours earlier, a police chase ended in a deadly two-car collision in the San Fernando Valley, where a 19-year-old college student was killed.
And earlier this week, a high-speed chase led to a nine-vehicle collision that killed an innocent woman and injured seven others.
The dangers of police pursuits have long been a topic of debate, with some questioning whether the risks outweigh the benefits. As these incidents continue to occur, it is crucial for law enforcement agencies to evaluate and implement safer alternatives to high-speed chases to prevent further harm to innocent bystanders.
