SOUTH FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Dash-camera video shows the police chase that killed a woman and her two grandchildren.
Dorothy Wright, 75, and her grandchildren, Cameron Costner, 12, and Layla Partridge, 6, were on their way to church when they were hit and killed by suspect driving a stolen car in College Park in January 2016.
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Police chased the stolen SUV from the Westin Hotel in College Park. The suspect crashed on South Gordon Street and Rogers Avenue.
Only Channel 2 Action News obtained dash-camera video that shows a College Park officer chasing for nearly 10 miles while weaving in and out of traffic and blowing through stop signs.
At one point, the suspect stopped to make a three-point turn and the officer waited on him before continuing the chase.
"That was the 'I could have got you moment' right there. That's when it should have ended. It should have ended two minutes before the crash," said Douglas Partridge, Layla and Cameron's father.
Partridge and his wife said they don't understand why the officer didn't take the opportunity to block the stolen car or ram it.
"To keep them blocked in, to keep them from going anywhere else, but they let him turn all the way around and continue chasing," Joi Partridge said.
Less than a minute after the suspect turned around, the SUV slammed into Wright's car.
"You can replace a car, but you can't replace a life. A car shouldn't be that big of a deal," Joi Partridge said.
Channel 2's Liz Artz contacted the City of College Park and the police chief, but she did not hear back.
The family's attorney said the family is adding the Atlanta police department to its lawsuit already filed against College Park.
The attorney said Atlanta joined in on the chase and was closing in on the suspect car on the other end of the street, which was the reason for the three-point turn.
"If he does not turn around again, Mrs. Wright and her two grandchildren would be here today," attorney Christopher Chestnut said.
Chestnut said both College Park and Atlanta police violated their chase policy.
"This was a non-forcible felony, which means there's no threat to life. The threat to life didn't begin until the chase began," he said.
The suspect ran from the scene and has not been caught.
If you have any information about the case, call Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477.
Cox Media Group
