David Haynes, St. Louis Metro PD. EOW 03-24-2010

[Citicop]

The band is back on, and another funeral to come. I hate these.

-Citicop.

Original Story

St. Louis Officer, 27, Killed in Crash While Chasing Burglary Suspect

By Christine Byers
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
03/24/2010

UPDATED AT 5:10 p.m.

David Haynes, a 27-year-old St. Louis police officer with one year on the force, was killed this morning in a four-car crash at Kingshighway and Oleatha while pursuing a burglary suspect.

Haynes, a newlywed, picked up a radio call describing a burglary suspect and his car. St. Louis police spokesperson Erica Van Ross said Haynes spotted the the suspect's car and pursued with lights and sirens on. Police said Haynes' car was struck from both sides at the intersection of Kingshighway and Oleatha Avenue.

Police said they received a call about a burglary in progress in the 5400 block of Bancroft Avenue. A suspect was breaking into a home at that location; another person came home to find the burglary in progress and called police, officials said. The burglary victim described the suspect and the car. Haynes spotted the car on Kingshighway. The suspect is still at large, described as a medium-build black male with a "chin beard" and two gold teeth. He wore a black polo shirt and dark jeans. He drove a teal or blue 2002 or 2003 Hyundai Sonata.

"It's certainly a tragic day for the police department. We are all sorry for the loss, for his wife and mother," said Police Chief Dan Isom. "We ask that everyone in St. Louis pray for his family and all of the officers in the St. Louis police department."

It is unclear whether the chase followed department procedure, Van Ross said in a follow-up e-mail this afternoon. The department's policy allows a vehicle pursuit if the officer believes the suspect "committed a felony involving the use or threatened use of deadly force."

Burglary would not meet that criteria, Van Ross said. But in the earliest reports of the events today, police officials said they believed the burglary suspect and the burglarly victim had been involved in an altercation at the burglary scene. Officials also said they had believed the suspect struck another car before the fatal accident.

Van Ross said this afternoon that words were exchanged, but no altercation took place and no other vehicle was struck before the fatal crash. "It’s not clear if Officer Haynes believed deadly force had been used or threatened," Van Ross said.

An employee at Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken, 3449 South Kingshighway, said the force of the accident shook the building.

Isom said Haynes was trapped in his car and had to be extricated by emergency workers. Isom said the officer was likely killed at the scene, but was pronounced dead at the hospital. Department officials earlier said there were no other injuries, but in a statement last this afternoon, police said four people in the other three vehicles were injured. Their injuries were believed to be non-life threatening. Police provided no details of the other victims in the accident.

"We heard it, then we ran to the door. We ran to the door and it was over," said Keith Morgan, general services employee for Bimmers R Us, 3435 South Kingshighway, a BMW auto dealership. Morgan said a colleague, technician Andrew Knarr, ran to the accident scene and used a pry bar to open the officer's door. Morgan said a female police officer later opened a rear door in the car.

Haynes was married Sept. 19 to Stephanie Rother Haynes. An official at the St. Louis Police Officers Association said Haynes had served in the U.S. Marine Corps and graduated from the St. Louis Police Academy Jan. 8, 2009.

Ron Battelle, the executive director of BackStoppers, a St. Louis area nonprofit organization that supports the families of the fallen, said his group will meet with Haynes' widow tomorrow and hand over a $5,000 check for funeral expenses.

"She'll be a part of our family for years to come," Battelle said.

Battelle said his organization's goal is to make the victim's survivors debt free.