The family of a 3-year-old girl killed when a man fleeing from police crashed into her mother’s vehicle has filed a lawsuit against two municipal police departments, the man police were pursuing and Prince George’s County, Maryland.
The lawsuit was filed Monday in Prince George’s County Circuit Court on behalf of the estate of 3-year-old Zoey Harrison. It was served to both the Capitol Heights and District Heights police departments, as well as 40-year-old Larry Naylor, who is accused of fleeing from police after he was stopped for a missing license plate back in May.
Earlier this fall, Naylor was indicted by a Prince George’s County grand jury on several counts related to the incident. He’s due to go on trial on criminal charges next year.
“This lawsuit is about accountability and public safety,” Terence Davis, of Morgan and Morgan, said.
Davis is representing Zoey Harrison’s family in this matter.
“The officers initiated a high-speed chase in pursuit over a missing tag … a low level traffic issue — through heavy traffic that chose to create a completely foreseeable danger to innocent drivers, and it cost a child her life,” Davis said. “We’re alleging negligence, failures in training and supervision, in violation of established pursuit safety standards.”
Prince George’s County has been named in the lawsuit because Capitol Heights and District Heights are municipalities in the county, and because the county’s police academy helps train officers from those departments.
A spokesperson for Prince George’s County told WTOP the county won’t comment on pending litigation.
WTOP also reached out to both departments for comment, but neither have responded. Likewise, the public defender listed for Naylor has not responded.
The chase led the county council to pass what’s known as Zoey’s Law last month. It aims to bring municipal departments in line with the county police department’s pursuit policies.
County leaders are also hoping state lawmakers will toughen penalties against someone who initiates a deadly crash by running from police.
“Zoey was a bright, joyful, 3-year-old girl who had her whole life in front of her,” Davis said. “She was full of energy. Loved being with her mother, and she was one of the kind of children who lighted it up in every room that she walked in. Her life was taken far too soon and in a way that was completely preventable,” Davis said.
The lawsuit asks for damages exceeding $75,000, the highest number that can be listed in this type of lawsuit. Davis said the exact amount of money the family is seeking isn’t clear yet.
“We want to make sure that no other family has to go through this pain that Zoey’s family is going through right now,” Davis said.
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