By RICK BRUNDRETT
Staff Writer
Batesburg-Leesville police acted negligently during a high-speed chase in 2003 that killed three Monetta residents, a lawsuit on behalf of one of the crash victims contends.
The Lexington County Circuit Court lawsuit, filed last week on behalf of Patrick Harris, seeks maximum damages of $300,000 the cap under the states Tort Claims Act from the town.
Harris, 31, was a passenger in a 1976 Chevrolet Nova that crashed the night of Nov. 21, 2003, into a tree at Two Notch and Brodie roads in Lexington County. The car was being pursued by Batesburg-Leesville police, authorities said.
Harris died, along with the Novas driver, Isaac Cullum, 24, and passenger Josephine Thomas, 30. Harris and Cullum were cousins, and Cullum and Thomas were dating, a relative of Harris said earlier.
Speeds during the chase reached more than 110 mph, the lawsuit said. The chase started in Batesburg-Leesville and ended about five miles outside the town limits.
The danger to the public far exceeded the interests the officers had in stopping these people, Columbia lawyer Dennis Bolt said Friday. Bolt, along with Columbia lawyer Thomas Fowler, is representing Harris family.
Efforts Friday to reach Harris relatives were unsuccessful.
Batesburg-Leesville Mayor James Wiszowaty said Friday he was unaware of the lawsuit, and he declined further comment.
The state Highway Patrol, which investigated the crash, said Batesburg-Leesville police first noticed the Nova driving left of center, or in the wrong lane of traffic, about 10:30 p.m. on David Drive inside the town limits. A police officer turned on emergency lights and sirens to try to pull the car over, but it sped off, the patrol said.
None of the occupants in the Nova was wearing a seat belt, troopers said. All three died at the scene.
Bolt said Friday there was no need to start a chase over an alleged minor traffic violation. He said the state Court of Appeals ruled several years ago in another chase case that police can be held liable for untoward results.
The lawsuit contends Batesburg-Leesville officer Sean Hopkins and other unnamed officers were negligent or grossly negligent by operating a police vehicle at a speed which endangered life and property, failing to monitor the pursuit or failing to end the chase when it endangered the safety of the public.
Bolt said the lawsuit is the first to be filed in the case.
Staff writer Tim Flach contributed to this story. Reach Brundrett at (803) 771-8484 or rbrundrett@thestate.com (mailto:rbrundrett@thestate.com) .