Police release body camera footage of deadly I-270 pursuit, crash

ROCKVILLE, Md. — The Maryland Attorney General's Office has released dashboard and body-worn camera footage from a deadly police pursuit and crash that happened last month in Montgomery County.

The incident began on May 20 on Interstate 270 near Route 28. Officers with the Montgomery County Police Department responded to a call for a welfare check of a man in a car on the ramp of Rockledge Road around 5 a.m. 

The man was then ejected from the car and pronounced dead at the scene, according to Montgomery County police. 

Officials have identified the man as 37-year-old Lawrence White of Washington, D.C. 

The 20-minute video begins with the officers approaching the stopped car and knocking on the window to get him to respond. After a few minutes of trying to make contact with the driver, the car is seen squealing away. Officers jump in their cruisers and give chase. Dash camera video shows the pursuit.

The officer in the cruiser notes the Infiniti was traveling at high speeds, and requests a helicopter to aid in the pursuit. About two minutes into the pursuit, the Infiniti loses control, crashes into a guard rail and spins out, crashing into other vehicles in the road.

Following the crash, an officer is seen exiting his cruiser pointing his gun at the car, but then realizes the driver was no longer in the car. The driver had been thrown from the car in the crash. 

All the involved officers are with the Montgomery County Police Department. The officers are identified as Sergeant Brett Trahan, a 29-year veteran; Police Officer III Kyle Baxter, a 9-year veteran; Police Officer III Jonathan Johnson, a 5-year veteran; and Police Officer Quinton Bowles, who has approximately a year-and-a-half of law enforcement experience. All of the officers are assigned to the Patrol Services Bureau.

The Independent Investigations Division, with the assistance of the Maryland State Police Crash Team, continues to investigate the circumstances of the pursuit.