Officer-worn body camera video captured the tense takedown of a driver who, police said, slammed into a rideshare filled with tourists in Miami Beach and took off on foot.
The Feb. 1 night run led to a crash involving a stolen vehicle and triggered a pursuit that ended in the capture of Jaymes Whitney.
The bodycam video captured officers screaming at the runaway motorist as the suspect ran down 15th Street, just after 9:40 p.m
“Get down! Get down now!” yelled an officer.
Whitney is seen stopping and raising his hands, then complying with the officers’ commands.
“Get down on the ground or you;re gonna get Tased. Get down on your chest!” yelled an officer.
Investigators said an Uber vehicle was carrying four people when they were hit by Whitney near 15th Street and Alton Road.
Moments later, the sound of a Taser being deployed could be heard.
Police said the suspect was being pursued because he allegedly failed to stop after officers were alerted by license plate readers that he was in a stolen car.
Detectives said Whitney bailed. A foot chase ensued.
Officers attempted to get Whitney to surrender, but the 6-foot-5, 270-pound suspect was a lot to handle.
“Put your hands behind your back!” yelled an officer.
“I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe, y’all!” yelled Whitney.
But Whitney was not the only one heard having trouble breathing. The arrest report states there was “a prolonged struggle, which lasted approximately six minutes.”
Officers deployed Tasers at least twice before Whitney was finally in custody. A crowd of witnesses could be heard cheering.
Whitney later appeared before Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Mindy S. Glazer.
“Three female passengers inside this other car were transported to [Jackson Memorial Hospital] with severe injuries,” said Glazer.
The judge then read the charges that the suspect faces.
“Grand theft of a vehicle, battery on a law-enforcement officer, possession of a controlled substance,” said Glazer.
The latter charge stems from the meth that, detectives said, officers found inside the stolen car.
In addition to the passengers, a Miami Beach police officer was transported to Mount Sinai Medical Center with scratches to the arm.
Whitney spent several days in jail and has an open pending case.
