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Zeleria Ayanna Simpson

Age : 24

Gender : Female

Race : Black

Date : 02/25/2022

Location : SC-33 and US-178

City : Orangeburg

County : Orangeburg

State : South Carolina

Agency : South Carolina Highway Patrol

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Bystander killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

REASON FOR CHASE: Bystander killed during speeding pursuit; a South Carolina Highway Patrol trooper attempted to stop a 2015 Hyundai Sonata after observing it traveling at a high rate of speed.
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NARRATIVE:
On 02/25/2022, 24-year-old Zeleria Ayanna Simpson of Charleston was killed in a two-vehicle collision at SC-33 and US-178 in Orangeburg County during a pursuit initiated by a South Carolina Highway Patrol trooper.
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At approximately 1:00 a.m., a South Carolina Highway Patrol trooper observed a 2015 Hyundai Sonata traveling at a high rate of speed in Orangeburg County and attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The driver continued driving and the trooper pursued the Hyundai.
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The Hyundai subsequently collided with a 2009 Mercury Milan at the intersection of SC-33 and US-178. Simpson and 20-year-old Shemyia Tonette Riley were killed. Three other South Carolina State University students were hospitalized with injuries.
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Simpson was a recent South Carolina State University graduate and former guard for the university's Lady Bulldogs basketball team. She graduated in May 2021 with a degree in criminal justice and law enforcement administration.
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The Hyundai driver, 23-year-old Fuquan Mekhi C. Hills, survived the crash. South Carolina Highway Patrol subsequently charged Hills with two counts of failure to stop for blue lights resulting in death, one count of failure to stop for blue lights resulting in great bodily injury, two counts of felony DUI involving death, felony DUI involving great bodily injury, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, unlawful possession of a firearm and open container.
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Because of the agencies involved, the Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office requested that the Lexington County Sheriff's Department conduct the crash investigation. South Carolina's 2022 Traffic Collision Fact Book records Lexington County Sheriff's Department as investigating one fatal Orangeburg County collision involving two deaths, consistent with this crash.
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The publicly available sources located do not provide the pursuit's maximum speed, total distance or duration.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
The South Carolina Highway Patrol did not publicly identify the trooper who initiated the traffic stop and pursuit.
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SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.wistv.com/2022/02/25/sc-state-current-student-graduate-killed-car-accident/
https://www.thestate.com/news/local/crime/article258959953.html
https://www.wrdw.com/2022/02/25/sc-state-student-graduate-killed-car-accident-three-injured/
https://www.scsuathletics.com/news/2022/2/26/general-department-of-athletics-mourns-the-loss-of-former-lady-bulldog-basketball-player.aspx
Classification: Confirmed police-related