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Aimee Nicole Doughty

Age :

Gender : Female

Race : White

Date : 11/22/2022

Location : East Michigan Avenue and North Bond Street

City : Fresno

County : Fresno

State : California

Agency : Fresno Police Department

Officer(s) :R. Harrell; E. Clairborne

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Passenger killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

REASON FOR CHASE:
Street Violence Tactical Team initiated pursuit for outstanding warrants.
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NARRATIVE:
On 11/22/2022, Aimee Nicole Doughty was critically injured during a Fresno Police Department pursuit involving a Ford F-150 driven by Anthony Jeff. Doughty subsequently died from her injuries on 12/12/2022. Federal litigation filed by her estate and six minor children now provides considerably more information about the police encounter than was publicly available when the crash occurred.
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At approximately 7:50 a.m., members of the Fresno Police Department Street Violence Tactical Team began following Jeff. Police knew Jeff was subject to an arrest warrant for an alleged violation of post-release community supervision. Officers followed him until he stopped to get fuel at the Sinclair station at North First Street and East Gettysburg Avenue.
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Doughty got out of the truck and went inside the gas station. When she returned, officers moved in to arrest Jeff. Jeff accelerated away, striking two undercover police vehicles and another vehicle as he left the station. Doughty got into the bed of the pickup as Jeff drove away. Fresno officers then initiated a vehicle pursuit, and additional officers joined after a radio broadcast.
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The pursuit traveled approximately two miles south through Fresno. Contemporary reporting described it as a short chase down First Street. Near East Michigan Avenue and North Bond Street, police used a vehicle-contact maneuver against the Ford F-150. According to the federal court's description of the allegations, a police vehicle struck the rear driver's side of Jeff's truck, causing it to rotate counterclockwise. Doughty was ejected from the truck bed.
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Jeff's truck also collided with two other vehicles. Jeff got out through the driver's-side window and ran before officers arrested him. Police initially did not realize where Doughty had landed. She was subsequently found unconscious in debris near the crash and transported to Community Regional Medical Center in critical condition.
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Doughty remained hospitalized for approximately three weeks. On 12/12/2022, she was pronounced dead. Later federal court records state that her cause of death was head trauma from blunt impact.
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In January 2024, Marissa Maldonado, representing Doughty's estate, and Doughty's six minor children filed a federal civil-rights and wrongful-death lawsuit against the City of Fresno and others. The defendants include Fresno officers R. Harrell and E. Clairborne and then-Chief Paco Balderrama. The lawsuit alleges excessive force, negligence, municipal liability and other claims arising from the pursuit and Doughty's death.
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The federal case remains active. A September 2025 scheduling order set expert discovery deadlines during 2026, a pretrial conference for November 2026 and trial for January 2027.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
Fresno Police Officers R. Harrell and E. Clairborne are identified as defendants in the federal civil-rights lawsuit arising from Doughty's death.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://abc30.com/fresno-police-chase-first-street-anthony-jeff/12481704/
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-caed-1_24-cv-00102/pdf/USCOURTS-caed-1_24-cv-00102-7.pdf
https://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/california/caedce/1%3A2024cv00102/440488/48
https://dockets.justia.com/docket/california/caedce/1%3A2024cv00102/440488