Newly released dashcam video shows a Florida Highway Patrol trooper spinning out a speeding driver on Interstate 95 near North Miami Beach, bringing a late-night chase to a sudden, screeching halt. The pursuit began just before midnight on Jan. 8 after a trooper reportedly clocked a car at 109 mph on the Palmetto Expressway. Authorities say no one was injured.
In the footage, the trooper closes in on the fleeing car in the northbound lanes, then executes a precision immobilization technique, or PIT maneuver, nudging the rear of the vehicle so it spins and comes to a stop. Authorities identified the driver as 25-year-old Davon Clyde Young of North Miami and said the chase ended on I-95 near North Miami Beach after that initial Palmetto sighting, according to Local 10.
On the recording, investigators describe Young as a “known gang member,” and say he hurled a loaded handgun out of the window during the pursuit. When officers searched the vehicle, they reported finding a 17-year-old girl, beer cans and a second loaded firearm. Young was arrested on counts including fleeing and eluding, child neglect and excessive speeding, and his next court hearing is scheduled for June 11, according to Local 10.
How the PIT maneuver is defined
The Florida Highway Patrol policy manual describes the Precision Immobilization Technique as a trained tactic in which a patrol vehicle makes controlled contact with a fleeing car to alter its direction of travel and bring it to a stop. The same policy requires troopers engaged in pursuits to activate emergency lights and sirens and to “drive with due regard for the safety of all persons,” as outlined in the Florida Highway Patrol policy.
Policy changes and national guidance
FHP’s use of PIT maneuvers and other intentional-contact tactics has drawn scrutiny since the agency revised its pursuit rules to give troopers more discretion. That shift was linked by local reporting to an uptick in PIT deployments, according to WGCU.
On the national level, guidance from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services and the Police Executive Research Forum recommends tighter pursuit policies that limit when high-speed chases are allowed in order to cut down on risk to bystanders, officers and fleeing drivers, per the COPS Office guide.
Legal status
Young’s charges remain allegations as his case moves through the Miami-Dade court system. The arrest report and the newly released dashcam footage are now part of the record as prosecutors and defense attorneys prepare for the June hearing.
