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Vanity Priscila Cabrera-Tirado

Age : 5

Gender : Female

Race : Latino/a/e

Date : 04/01/2022

Location : Interstate 95 at State Road 9B

City : Jacksonville

County : Duval

State : Florida

Agency : Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Bystander killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

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REASON FOR CHASE: Jacksonville Sheriff's Office officers initiated the pursuit after responding to a report that 5-year-old Vanity Priscila Cabrera-Tirado had been taken from the home where she was living by her mother, who did not have custody of her. Police were told that the mother was armed.
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NARRATIVE:
On 03/31/2022, 5-year-old Vanity Priscila Cabrera-Tirado was killed when the vehicle in which she was a passenger left Interstate 95 and entered a retention pond during a Jacksonville Sheriff's Office pursuit in Jacksonville. Vanity became trapped inside the submerged vehicle and drowned. Her mother escaped from the vehicle.
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Shortly after 7:30 p.m., JSO officers responded to a home on Jacksonville's Northside after receiving a report that Vanity had been taken by her mother, who did not have custody of her. Police were told the mother was armed. An officer encountered the vehicle near Biscayne Boulevard and Dunn Avenue and attempted to stop it. The driver continued away and JSO initiated a pursuit.
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The pursuit continued for approximately 30 miles from Jacksonville's Northside, south on Interstate 95 and across the Fuller Warren Bridge. Police reported that the vehicle reached speeds exceeding 90 mph, traveled on the interstate shoulder, ran red lights and nearly collided with other vehicles as JSO officers continued pursuing it.
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Near the State Road 9B interchange, the vehicle attempted to leave I-95 but failed to negotiate the exit ramp, left the roadway and entered a retention pond. The driver escaped from the submerged vehicle, but Vanity remained trapped in the front passenger seat as the vehicle sank.
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JSO officers entered the pond and attempted to reach Vanity but were unable to remove her from the submerged vehicle. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Dive Team subsequently recovered Vanity's body. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
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Vanity was born on 07/15/2016 and was five years old when she died. Her family held visitation and funeral services for her at Hillsboro Memorial Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens in Brandon on 04/15/2022. Her obituary includes numerous photographs documenting Vanity's life with her family.
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In January 2024, Vanity's mother pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter of a child and aggravated fleeing or attempting to elude causing death. Prosecutors said the plea provided for a sentence of between 20 and 30 years in Florida State Prison.
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The criminal prosecution focused on the actions of Vanity's mother. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office officers who initiated and continued the approximately 30-mile pursuit were not criminally charged for their role in initiating or continuing the pursuit.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office did not publicly identify the officer who initiated the traffic stop and pursuit or the other officer(s) who participated in the pursuit in the sources located.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/2022/04/01/heavy-police-activity-on-i-95-south-at-state-road-9b/
https://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/local/duval-county/woman-accused-high-speed-chase-resulting-5-year-olds-death-jacksonville-identified/2PHCEPVPCRCIPAFHRIB2G3PDOI/
https://sao4th.com/news/2024/cabrera-pleads-guilty-to-aggravated-manslaughter-of-her-daughter/
https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/brandon-fl/vanity-cabrera-tirado-10709280