A man has been arrested on a charge of second-degree murder two weeks after authorities say he struck a D.C. police officer who was helping a stranded motorist on Interstate 695.
Officer Terry Bennett, 32, died Wednesday of injuries he sustained the night of Dec. 23, according to D.C. police.
Jerrold Coates, 47, of Northwest D.C., was arrested Friday and charged with second-degree murder while armed in Bennett’s death. D.C.’s interim police chief, Jeffery Carroll, said Coates was armed with a vehicle used in the alleged murder.
Bennett was assisting a driver whose vehicle broke down in the eastbound lanes of I-695 near South Capitol Street, when a passing vehicle hit him just after 10 p.m., according to officials.
What led up to the fatal collision
Just before 10 p.m., Bennett was dispatched to Interstate 695, where a vehicle had run out of gas and been struck by another vehicle, causing minor damage.
“After exchanging information, the second vehicle left the scene,” Carroll said during a news conference Friday. “Officer Bennett was on the scene, setting up flares and staying with that vehicle that ran out of gas.”
Carroll said the suspect’s vehicle was traveling at a “high rate of speed” as it neared the disabled vehicle and Bennett.
“The investigation determined that the suspect was driving erratically and attempting to change lanes through slow traffic when he struck officer Bennett,” Carroll said.
Coates’ vehicle came to a stop after hitting the back of Bennett’s marked police cruiser, Carroll said.
“He attempted to open the vehicle door, and then he kind of fell out of the car unconscious,” Carroll said, describing Coates.
He regained consciousness and was treated by first responders with naloxone, a medication commonly used to combat symptoms of an opioid overdose. Coates was brought to the hospital with injuries.
Police are awaiting the results of a full toxicology report, which checks for alcohol or drugs in a person’s system. Carroll said those results could result in additional charges in the case. A small amount of marijuana was found in Coates’ vehicle, Carroll said.
Coates, an employee of D.C.’s Department of Parks and Recreation, uses a wheelchair and operates his vehicle with hand controls.
“I don’t know his specific medical condition,” Carroll said. “I do know he does use a wheelchair, and there were hand controls that were inside the vehicle.”
Bennett was hospitalized with serious injuries following the crash.
Coates was released from custody as police investigated what happened. Following Bennett’s death, D.C. police consulted with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to obtain an arrest warrant in the case Thursday.
The crash last month marked the 127th line of duty death in the D.C. police force’s history, according to the department’s news release.
Bennett was an eight-year veteran on the force who was assigned to the first district division.
The 32-year-old was born and raised in D.C. and graduated from Ballou High School in 2011. He previously worked as Ballou’s associate dean and coached the football team.
Bennett is survived by his wife, 3-year-old son and his parents.
Carroll said Bennett’s loss has taken a toll on the D.C. police department.
“Officer Bennett was in the hospital for a very long period of time, and his friends and family and co-workers were at the hospital, checking on him, praying for him, thinking of him,” he said. “So they also had the ability to have an even more closer relationship with his family members.”
The interim chief referenced an event held Thursday that D.C. police called a dignified escort. Hundreds of law enforcement officials lined 3rd Street NW near the U.S. Capitol to honor Bennett.
“If you look at the escort that occurred yesterday from the hospital, you can really see just the amount of people that came out,” Carroll said. “Some people, I’m sure didn’t even know officer Bennett, but just for the sacrifice that he and his family have given to the city.”
