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Chatuma M. Crawford III

Age : 20

Gender : Male

Race : Black

Date : 12/17/2021

Location : Northern Boulevard just south of Totman Road

City : Cicero

County : Onondaga

State : New York

Agency : Town of Cicero Police Department

Officer(s) :Michael Aregano

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Pedestrian bystander killed by off-duty police officer vehicle

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

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REASON WHY POLICE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION:
No police activity was involved. Officer Michael Aregano was off duty and driving his fiancée’s personal Toyota Highlander to dinner in Syracuse. Although his final patrol shift had occurred on 10/28/2021, he remained employed as a Cicero Police Department patrol officer until his retirement on 12/31/2021.
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EVENT NARRATIVE:
On 12/17/2021, at approximately 7:08 p.m., 20-year-old Chatuma M. Crawford III was on Northern Boulevard near Totman Road in Cicero. Crawford and his girlfriend had attended a birthday party together earlier that evening. After an argument, Crawford left their vehicle and walked south along Northern Boulevard. According to his girlfriend, Crawford threw his cellphone several times while walking; the final time, it traveled across the southbound lanes, and Crawford entered the roadway to retrieve it.
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Aregano was driving south in the left lane of Northern Boulevard with his fiancée as a passenger. The roadway was dark and had no streetlights. Aregano told investigators that he noticed a stopped vehicle on the shoulder but did not see Crawford before striking him with the SUV. A motorist traveling directly behind Aregano estimated that both vehicles were traveling approximately 50 mph; the speed limit at the collision site was 55 mph.
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Aregano struck Crawford in the southbound left lane just south of Totman Road. Crawford's girlfriend said she had seen Crawford near the yellow line by the median immediately before the collision. She found him unconscious and unresponsive after the impact. Aregano stopped, called 911 and reported that he had struck a person. Emergency responders attempted lifesaving measures, but Crawford died at the scene.
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The New York State Police reconstructed the collision. Investigators found no evidence that Aregano was speeding, impaired or distracted. The reconstruction and witness evidence indicated that darkness, the absence of street lighting and Crawford's dark clothing substantially limited visibility. The medical examiner concluded that Crawford was probably bent over when he was struck, consistent with the account that he was attempting to retrieve his cellphone.
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TOTAL FATALITIES/INJURIES:
1 Fatality, 0 reported injuries.
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DISPOSITION:
The New York Attorney General's Office of Special Investigation investigated Aregano's role in Crawford's death because New York law requires review when a police officer, including an off-duty officer, may have caused a person's death. OSI reviewed eyewitness accounts, physical evidence, crash reconstruction, medical evidence and other investigative material. On 12/29/2022, OSI concluded that the evidence did not establish criminal conduct by Aregano and declined to file criminal charges.
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LITIGATION:
None found.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://ag.ny.gov/index.php/press-release/2022/attorney-general-james-office-special-investigation-releases-report-death-chatuma
https://cnycentral.com/news/local/ags-office-finds-cicero-officer-did-not-commit-crime-in-2021-deadly-pedestrian-crash
https://www.localsyr.com/news/local-news/pedestrian-killed-after-getting-hit-by-car-driven-by-an-off-duty-cicero-police-officer/
https://www.syracuse.com/crime/2021/12/off-duty-cicero-police-officer-driving-car-that-hit-killed-20-year-old-pedestrian.html