Murderous Hampton Virginia COPS

Woman killed by police after refusing to stop

By David Chernicky
Daily Press
Web updated Friday, July 27, 2001, 10:55 AM

HAMPTON - Police shot and killed a woman who they say was driving recklessly early this morning near downtown Hampton.

Sgt. Jeff Walden says an officer tried to stop the woman near Shell Road and Colonial Avenue around 1:30 a.m. She didn’t stop, even after the officer turned on his lights and siren, Walden said.

Officers then pursued the driver at speeds ranging from 30 to 45 miles an hour through the downtown area, Walden said.

The woman continued driving erratically until she stopped at the intersection of East Pembroke Avenue and Eaton Street. The car then accelerated, striking a police car that was stopped a short distance away.

The first officer involved in the pursuit approached the woman’s car and opened the driver’s door. Walden said the woman shifted into reverse, pinning the officer between the open door and the suspect’s car.

Walden said a second officer then shot at the driver. The car continued in reverse until it struck another police car and stopped. The driver then drove forward, hitting a third police car before stopping.

Paramedics took the woman to Sentara Hampton General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

The woman hasn’t been identified pending notification of the next of kin. Her body will be sent to the medical examiner’s office in Norfolk.

Yvonne Ormond, who lives on Washington Street, around the corner from where the shooting happened, said she was asleep when "some noise outside spooked my cat, Sassy. I checked the clock and it was around 2 a.m."

Ormond counted three shots. "I saw police lights coming through the blinds, so I looked out the window and saw them unraveling yellow crime tape. I wished I hadn't heard them. I'm a mother, and somebody's child is gone, whether justified or not. I feel badly for the police too, because they have a tough job."

Kelly Turlington, who lives in the 400 block of Washington Street, said he was awakened by four or five shots.

When he descended from his upstairs apartment, he encountered a policeman outside who told him to go back in.

Turlington said he later stood at the corner of his property, about 50 feet from where the car crashed, and saw the officers remove the woman's body from the back seat.

"There were a lot of cop cars out there, including two or three state troopers. I saw the driver-side window was shattered by I didn't hear any squealing tires or the crash."

Walden said the officers weren’t injured and will be placed on administrative leave. He did not identify them. He also said the department is investigating the shooting.