Page 13 - Florida Sentinel 2-14-17

Local
Girl Pulled From Burning Car After High Speed Chase Dies
MILAYA COOPER
... Dies as a result of her injuries
A 16-year-old teenager was hospi- talized and facing several charges, in- cluding manslaughter. His 15-year-old passenger is dead as a re- sult of the injuries she received in the accident.
The accident that left Milaya Cooper dead began on February 2nd, when a 2012 white Kia Forte was re- ported stolen from the Preserve Apartments in Lakeland.
Last Tuesday afternoon, a Plant City police officer saw the vehicle and attempted to conduct a traffic stop at Alexander Street and Reynolds Street.
A spokesperson for the Plant City Police Department said instead of stopping, the driver intentionally struck the police cruiser and fled the scene.
Plant City police attempted to stop the car on several occasions, but the driver refused to stop. The pursuit continued on State Road 400 towards Lakeland. The pursuit was termi- nated and information was forwarded to other law enforcement agencies.
Lakeland Police Officer Scott Hutton saw the Kia at the Marathon Gas Station, 4275 Lakeland Hills Blvd., and tried to stop it. But the
BOBBY McNEAL
... Facing manslaughter charges
driver fled north on State Road 33. Officer Hutton reported that the Kia was traveling 95 miles per hour at one point. About 10 minutes after the pursuit began Officer Hutton said the driver of the car lost control in a roundabout at Commonwealth Av- enue and Deon Still Road, in Polk City.
The driver lost control of the vehi- cle crashed into a tree, flipped over, and the vehicle caught fire. T h e dash cam in Officer Hutton’s vehi- cle captured the crash.
Officer Hutton pulled McNeal out of the burning vehicle to safety. But the driver, identified as Bobby McNeal, resisted and the officer had to use his taser.
“Not once did McNeal say an- other person was in the vehicle. Offi- cer Hutton did not see Cooper because she was in the back seat sur- rounded by dark smoke.
“When Polk County Sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene and other Lakeland Police, they saw Cooper and removed her from the vehicle after forcing the rear car door open. At that point, the heat of the flames was so intense an officer’s cell- phone was melted,” police said.
She was unresponsive when she was flown to Orlando Regional Med- ical Center. She died of her injuries at
Stolen Vehicle
Stolen Vehicle On Fire
9:30 p.m. Tuesday, police said. Cooper was a student at Durant
High School, in Plant City.
McNeal was transported to Lake-
land Regional Medical Center with se- rious, but non-life threatening injuries. He was listed in guarded condition.
Upon his release, he will be charged with manslaughter, 2 counts
of aggravated assault on a law en- forcement officer, 3 counts of fleeing and eluding a law enforcement offi- cer, and aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer.
He has 3 prior felony convictions and 8 misdemeanor arrests. He will be transported to the Polk County Jail upon release from the hospital, police said.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2017 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 13