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Jawuan James Ginyard

Age : 26

Gender : Male

Race : Black

Date : 10/09/2021

Location : I-695 and Wilkens Avenue exit ramp

City : Baltimore

County : Baltimore

State : Maryland

Agency : Maryland Transportation Authority Police

Officer(s) :Officer Theodore Jeremenko

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Driver killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

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REASON WHY PURSUIT WAS INITIATED:
At approximately 2:45 a.m., Maryland Transportation Authority Police Officer Theodore Jeremenko was parked at I-395 and Conway Street when he saw Jawuan Ginyard make a left turn against a red light onto I-395. Jeremenko followed and observed the Monte Carlo repeatedly accelerate and slow sharply, weave and drive onto the shoulder. Believing the driver might be impaired, Jeremenko activated his emergency equipment and attempted a traffic stop.
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OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY:
On 10/09/2021, Ginyard initially slowed on I-95, activated his hazard lights and pulled onto the right shoulder. Jeremenko stopped behind him and got out of his patrol vehicle. As the officer approached on foot, Ginyard drove away, and Jeremenko returned to his cruiser and initiated the pursuit.
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The pursuit continued south on I-95 and onto I-695. Jeremenko repeatedly radioed Ginyard's speed as it increased beyond 85 mph. The subsequent crash investigation recovered much more precise information from the Monte Carlo's event-data recorder: Ginyard was traveling 111 mph as he entered the I-695 exit ramp toward eastbound Wilkens Avenue.
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Ginyard attempted to negotiate the right-hand curve on the ramp but lost control. The Monte Carlo struck the left guardrail, then a concrete curb and grassy median separating the lanes of Wilkens Avenue before crossing the westbound lanes and striking another curb. Ginyard was ejected and suffered catastrophic head and chest injuries. Jeremenko stopped, approached the wreck and rendered aid until emergency medical personnel arrived, but Ginyard died at the scene.
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The Attorney General's investigation also established where Ginyard had been going immediately before the police encounter. A longtime friend told investigators that he and Ginyard had met to get food approximately an hour before the pursuit. After eating, they left in separate cars and were traveling to the friend's Baltimore residence. The friend was behind Ginyard at Conway Street, saw him turn against the red light and subsequently saw the police vehicle follow him onto I-395.
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The friend later encountered the pursuit again while traveling toward I-695 and saw Ginyard's car with the police cruiser behind it and its emergency lights activated. He telephoned Ginyard; Ginyard answered but did not speak. The friend then heard the fatal crash occur through the telephone and arrived at the crash scene shortly afterward.
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Ginyard was a 26-year-old Baltimore resident. The detailed state investigation provides unusually strong information about his final hour—he had been out getting food with a longtime friend and was following that friend toward his home when the police encounter began—but the publicly released investigative record contains little additional biographical information about his family, employment or personal life.
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DISPOSITION:
The Maryland Attorney General's Independent Investigations Division conducted an independent investigation that included Jeremenko's dashboard-camera footage, police radio transmissions, witness interviews, crash reconstruction, the Monte Carlo's event-data recorder, medical-examiner findings and MDTA pursuit policies. The IID completed its investigation and forwarded its report to the Baltimore County State's Attorney's Office on 03/28/2022.
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The Baltimore County State's Attorney's Office declined criminal prosecution on 04/06/2022. Prosecutors concluded there was no basis for criminal charges against Jeremenko for his role in initiating or continuing the pursuit.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
Theodore Jeremenko was a Senior Officer with the Maryland Transportation Authority Police and had approximately 10 years with the department when the fatal pursuit occurred. He was assigned to the Operations Support Unit. The Baltimore County State's Attorney subsequently declined prosecution..
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SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/state-investigators-release-report-in-police-pursuit-that-ended-in-fatal-baltimore-county-crash/
https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/attorney-general-releases-footage-from-police-pursuit-preceding-fatal-one-car-crash/
https://www.marylandattorneygeneral.gov/Pages/IID/Reports/042922_Full_Report_Redacted.pdf
https://www.wbaltv.com/article/jawuan-james-ginyard-crash/37927433
https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/video-released-of-police-chase-that-ended-in-fatal-crash-in-baltimore-county
https://www.wmar2news.com/news/local-news/report-finds-no-evidence-of-mdta-officer-acting-negligently-recklessly-leading-up-to-deadly-pursuit
https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/officers-wont-be-charged-in-baltimore-county-deaths-prosecutors-question-states-delay-in-reports/
https://www.wbal.com/one-person-dead-after-police-chase-turned-car-accident