2 MPD officers relieved of duty after fatal crash

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Two Memphis Police officers are off the job after a fatal crash Friday morning.

One person was killed and five others were injured in the crash, which came as MPD was attempting to stop a Dodge Avenger.

Police laid down stop sticks to disable the Avenger, which they say was stolen.

It’s not clear where or at what point that measure was taken.

According to police radio chatter, pursuing officers were advised to “back off” of the driver after the stop sticks were used.

The driver then allegedly ran a red light and crashed into four other vehicles at Kirby Parkway and Raines Road around 10 a.m.

Surveillance video obtained by Action News 5 shows a white Dodge Avenger drive into oncoming traffic, flipping mid air. Seconds later, three MPD cruisers pull up to the crash site.

Businesses and drivers spent most of the day trying to figure out what led up to the large scene that shut down Kirby Parkway and Raines Road for hours.

Kim Mok works at a beauty supply store near the scene says she didn’t see the crash but rushed outside after hearing the loud commotion just feet from her front door.

“One car flipped, the white car,” said Mok. “And the other car, quarter part of it was gone. It was terrible. I was more shocked five cars involved. It was like a kind of boom sound. I thought it was too loud to be a car accident”

According to Memphis Police pursuit policy, pursuits are prohibited unless the person police are chasing is believed to have committed a violent felony.

The driver of the Dodge Avenger died at the scene. Five others were taken to nearby hospitals with non-critical injuries.

The identity of the the deceased driver has not been released.

There is no word on whether this pursuit met the threshold set by the Memphis Police Department.

Memphis Police say there have been 173 traffic fatalities in Memphis this year.

Two officers have been relieved of duty pending the results of the investigation.

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