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Officer Lucas Brito did nothing wrong in pursuing ex-con Altonia Williams -- who was believed to be armed – while responding to a call of a home invasion shortly before 4 a.m. last Aug. 14, the panel found.
A subsequent collision killed Tracee Blount, 38, of Long Branch, who was with Williams.
State law mandated the grand jury review because a death occurred in an encounter with law enforcement. The reviews are conducted no matter what the particular circumstances are.
Evidence presented to the grand jurors included police bodycam video.
“Oh, sh*t! He’s drivin’!” Brito shouts on one video before his cruiser and the vehicle driven by Williams slam head-on into one another near the corner of MacArthur and Elmwood avenues.
Williams, 46, of Long Branch, bailed out of the BMW 328i and was instantly captured by officers who converged on the accident scene.
Two officers dragged Blount from the sedan onto a nearby lawn seconds before the car erupted in flames.
She was taken to Jersey Shore Medical Center in Neptune, where she was pronounced dead a little over three hours after the crash, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said.
Williams was taken to the medical center in custody, the attorney general said. Brito also received medical attention there following the crash, he added.
SEE: Grand Jury Reviews Jersey Shore Passenger's Death In Accused Armed Burglar's Crash With Police
A grand jury in Monmouth County later indicted Williams on a host of charges connected to the initial crime and the crash – including armed robbery, aggravated assault, eluding, vehicular homicide, aggravated manslaughter and various weapons offenses that include possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
He has remained held in the Monmouth County Jail ever since, records show.
State law also requires examinations of law enforcement’s response whenever a civilian in New Jersey dies in an encounter with police.
As part of the process, Platkin publicly released video recordings of the incident after them with Blount’s family.
The recordings from the incident can all be found here: Blount Recordings (NJ Attorney General)
A member of Platkin’s staff presented the case to the grand jurors following an investigation by his Office of Public Integrity and Accountability (OPIA).
The evidence included the video, witness interviews, photographs and autopsy results from a state medical examiner.
Grand jurors concluded deliberations by voting a “no bill,” meaning no criminal charges should be considered against the officer.
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