Community activists and victim families held a press conference on Tuesday afternoon to demand accountability after Cuyahoga County Sheriff's deputies were involved in a second fatal chase in the last five months.
You can watch the press conference below:
The families of Tamaya Westmoreland and Sharday Elder, along with activists, gathered outside of the Cuyahoga County Administrative Headquarters on Tuesday afternoon to ask for transparency and accountability regarding the recent fatal pursuits.
LaTonya Goldsby, the president of BLM Cleveland, said there needs to be an urgent reform to end police pursuits and immediate action to review law enforcement policies.
During Tuesday's press conference, Goldsby said the call for change reflects a concern about law enforcement policies that protect residents.
"Every resident deserves to feel safe in their neighborhood," Goldsby said. "The risk imposed by high-speed pursuits often outweigh the intended outcomes, especially when they result in preventable harm to innocent bystanders and community members."
Attorney Stan Jackson, who represents the families of Westmoreland and Elder, both of whom were killed during pursuits involving the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office, spoke up about the need for transparency.
"The reality is that these families are now one family, and they shouldn't have to be that because of the loss of their loved one," Jackson said.
Westmoreland was struck during a pursuit on March 28 when she was hit by a 24-year-old, causing her SUV to go over the traffic bridge at the Eddy Road exit in a ball of flames as she was thrown from her vehicle.
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She had nothing to do with the pursuit and died on April 13.
The deputy who initiated the pursuit, Kasey Loudermilk, was involved in a separate pursuit that left Elder dead just five months later.
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Elder, a mother of two, died when a car plowed into hers at Superior Avenue and Addison Road. Deputies with the Cuyahoga County Downtown Safety Patrol were chasing the 24-year-old driver.
"She should be here with her family and her kids," Cearria Elder, Sharday Elder’s sister, said during the press conference. "We won't never have a good holiday, never have a good birthday. Her kids are suffering without her."
