A suspect trying to escape police slammed into the car of a Maryland man and his two children Sunday afternoon, killing the father. While the kids suffered only minor physical injuries, his family says they're struggling to process their grief and the children's devastation.
Patricia Lovos told us and our partners at Telemundo 44 about the layers of trauma caused by the loss of her brother-in-law, Rogelio Sanchez Gomez.
Lovos says the 44-year-old was so proud of being a husband and a father — a provider who worked long and hard at his job installing stone and granite countertops. She says right now, the family must stay focused on figuring out how to best support his two young sons.
The Prince George’s County family's pain is compounded by the circumstances of the crash.
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It happened as police were trying to stop a BMW with a shooting suspect inside. Morningside police say an officer began trying to stop the BMW after a 911 call from a driver who said someone in the BMW was shooting at him on St. Barnabas Road. They confirm a gun was found in the vehicle after the crash.
The two children were with their father when the BMW driver, accused of fleeing police at a high rate of speed, plowed into their car near the intersection of Suitland and Allentown roads.
"The car hit him really hard," one of the little boys said in Spanish.
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The BMW driver, identified by police as Dashawn Redding, allegedly ran from the crash scene. He was later arrested by Morningside Police.
He faces several charges, including attempted murder, assault, reckless endangerment, and carrying a loaded gun in a vehicle.
According to online court records, Redding was in court just two weeks ago on a domestic violence case and was ordered to surrender any firearms in his possession. But police say they found a loaded gun in the BMW.
The victim’s family worries they will never see justice.
"We want justice. What happened to him not right," Lovos said in Spanish.
In the middle of the horrific loss, the victim's family says their priority must be to help the boys process a type of emotional pain that most of us could never imagine.
“The kids are traumatized; one of them is scared to go by that street," she said.
The investigation is being handled by the Maryland Attorney General’s Office. Police say the officer involved had a body-worn camera, but the cruiser did not have a dash camera.
