Newly released video and internal records show an Orlando police officer trailing a white Lexus through the Parramore neighborhood with no lights or siren activated in the seconds before a horrific collision that killed 28-year-old Delmy Alvarez and gravely injured her passenger, Gina Mustacchio. The Lexus ran a red light and plowed into Alvarez’s Honda Civic on Feb. 10, 2023, a crash that set off criminal charges, a civil lawsuit, and renewed scrutiny of how the Orlando Police Department handles vehicle pursuits.
Family’s Street Video And Internal Files Flag An Off-Policy Pursuit
Mustacchio’s family turned over street-camera clips to local investigators and broadcasters that show the Lexus blowing a red light and slamming into the Civic. An internal affairs report obtained by news investigators concluded Officer Esequiel Colon "did engage in an unauthorized pursuit" and quoted him acknowledging he did not have reasonable suspicion that the Lexus driver had committed a forcible felony. According to WESH, the family says those records and video were sitting in files, not on air.
High-Speed Run Through Parramore Turns Deadly
Local reporting and court documents describe a short but volatile chase that covered less than a mile through the residential streets of Parramore. Coverage reviewed by FOX 35 puts the final seconds at roughly 82 mph and notes both cars topping 60 mph at points before the Lexus ran a red light at Parramore Avenue and West Anderson Street and T-boned Alvarez’s car. The impact killed Alvarez and left Mustacchio with multiple fractures and the loss of a kidney, according to reporting from FOX 35 Orlando.
Criminal Case, Plea Deal And City Payout
The wreck led to criminal charges against the Lexus driver, Jaicarious Grace, along with a civil suit from Mustacchio. Court records and local coverage show Grace later accepted a plea while prosecutors continued to pursue serious counts, with reporting in late 2025 detailing the trajectory of the criminal case and sentencing. The city, meanwhile, reached a settlement tied to Mustacchio’s lawsuit that Orlando Sentinel reporting pegged at $300,000, after which the civil case was dismissed with prejudice.
Survivor Says Discipline Was A Slap On The Wrist
Mustacchio has repeatedly focused her criticism on the department as much as on the driver, telling investigators and a judge she believes the crash was "the failed cover-up of an improper and unauthorized police chase." She said she only learned months after the crash that internal affairs had even reviewed the incident, and that the discipline on paper - a 40-hour suspension offset by paid time off - felt wildly out of step with what happened to her and Alvarez. Mustacchio has also said she will never set foot in Orlando again, as detailed in coverage by WESH.
What Policy And State Law Actually Say
Orlando’s written vehicle pursuit policy allows officers to chase only when they have reasonable suspicion that a suspect has committed a violent, forcible felony, and it explicitly bars pursuits for routine traffic violations. The directive defines a "follow" as driving in proximity without using lights and siren and requires supervisors to review pursuits and shut down any that do not meet the criteria. The full directive is available here. State law further limits when cities can be held liable, unless an officer’s conduct amounts to willful, wanton, or reckless disregard for safety under Florida Statute 768.28, a legal framework that shows up frequently in pursuit-related cases.
Families Say Answers Are Thin, Oversight Thinner
Advocates and relatives of the victims argue the newly surfaced video and internal records reopen long-standing questions about how Orlando police decide when to follow a car, when to call off a chase, and how much the public is told when things go fatally wrong. Department records confirm internal discipline for the officer, but families say a short suspension and a civil payout fall far short of accounting for a young woman’s death. The case continues to fuel demands for stronger oversight and truly independent reviews whenever pursuits kill uninvolved people, concerns that have been explored in further reporting by the Orlando Sentinel.
