SUMMERVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA — A South Carolina deputy has been placed on leave after ramming his car into a motorcycle, causing the rider to crash and die.
WCSC reports that Deputy James Vansant spotted the motorcycle speeding just before midnight on April 19 and tried to pull the rider over.
The biker refused to stop and instead sped up, prompting the deputy to give chase.
Dashcam video released by the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office shows the five-and-a-half-minute pursuit that covered nearly eight miles.
Near the end of the footage, the police cruiser is inches away from the suspect and can be seen ramming into his motorcycle twice.
After the second collision, the bike is thrown slightly forward and becomes unsteady. It passes between a stationary vehicle and the sidewalk but soon crashes.
The 30-year-old suspect, later identified as Robert Lee Clark Jr., wasn’t wearing a helmet, and died at the scene.
Police later found two ounces of marijuana, a marijuana cigarette and a pipe on his body.
The sheriff’s office claimed in a statement that the crash resulted from the rider missing a gear while shifting. An internal review and a separate investigation by the South Carolina Highway Patrol are both pending.
