AG report: Officer didn’t cause death of driver in Oct. pursuit

The Maryland Transportation Authority Police officer whose October vehicle pursuit ended in a fatal crash off an Interstate 695 ramp in Baltimore County didn’t cause the man’s death, said a report released Friday by the state attorney general’s office.

Officer Theodore Jeremenko was following police policy and was not driving recklessly as he followed a vehicle driven by Jawuan Ginyard, 26, according to the report’s analysis of evidence.

A crash report found that Ginyard’s vehicle was going 111 mph as it traveled down an exit ramp and failed to navigate the curve, leading to a crash.

Baltimore County’s Deputy State’s Attorney Robin Coffin wrote March 31 that the investigation indicated there was “no basis” for criminal charges against Jeremenko.

“He was clearly acting appropriately in attempting to conduct a stop,” wrote Coffin, adding that Jeremenko was “nowhere near” Ginyard when he lost control of the vehicle.

Ginyard, who died Oct. 9, was remembered by friends and family as a loving person who doted on his daughters and had an infectious laugh.

His death was among the first to be investigated by the Maryland Attorney General’s Office under a 2021 law granting investigatory powers to the agency for all police-involved fatalities across the state.

His brother, Jamaul Ginyard, said Friday he’d read the report before its release and it seemed “well-done.” Calling his brother the “life of the party,” Jamaul Ginyard said it’s been “real hard” without Jawuan.

“He pretty much kept everybody together,” Jamaul said. “It’s been very strange without him — not being able to call him, not being able to see him.”

The report by the state attorney general’s Independent Investigations Division said Ginyard’s death was ruled an accident by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and noted an autopsy found his blood alcohol content was above the legal limit.

The division analyzed a series of criminal statutes for relevance in the case, including manslaughter by vehicle or vessel, criminally negligent manslaughter by vehicle or vessel, involuntary manslaughter, duty of driver to render reasonable assistance, and reckless or negligent driving.

It found there was no grossly negligent conduct or unjustifiable risk and no “basis to conclude that Officer Jeremenko caused Mr. Ginyard’s death.”

It also found Jeremenko called for a medic upon arriving to the crash scene and began to render aid to Ginyard until EMS arrived on scene, eight minutes after the call.

Jeremenko declined to be interviewed by investigators from the Independent Investigations Division.

Those investigators are tasked with examining statewide civilian deaths involving police officers, including fatal police shootings, use-of-force incidents, pursuits and deaths that occur while an individual is in police custody.

The office made headlines this week for a dispute with the Harford County sheriff following last Saturday’s fatal police shooting by sheriff ’s deputies. A county judge ruled Thursday the sheriff had to turn over all evidence from the shooting to the attorney general’s office.

On Monday, the division released its first completed investigation, which examined an Oct. 11 police shooting that left Jovan Singleton, 36, dead. The report found a Baltimore County Police lieutenant returned fire at Singleton, striking him in the upper right of his back.

Under state law, the Independent Investigations Division does not make a prosecutorial decision; that power rests with the local prosecutors, in this case the Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office. The report about Jawuan Ginyard’s death was released publicly after Coffin made the decision not to bring criminal charges against Jeremenko.

A narrative in the report details that, on Oct. 9, Jeremenko observed a silver Chevrolet Monte Carlo turn left onto Interstate 395 from Conway Street while the traffic light was still red, then followed it onto I-95 South.

On the highway, the report describes Ginyard at times driving on the shoulder, speeding up and slowing down “drastically” and cutting off other vehicles as it wove through lanes. The in-car camera recorded Jeremenko saying the vehicle almost came to a “stop in the middle of the highway,” the report said.

Jeremenko attempted to pull Ginyard over at the exit for I-695 West, but Ginyard drove away as he approached the car on foot. Jeremenko followed, telling dispatch, “Vehicle took off on me on approach. It is a possible [intoxicated driver].”

Ginyard then took the exit of I-695 for Wilkens Avenue and apparently lost control.

A crash report “concluded that the car was unable to negotiate the right curve on the exit ramp,” the report said. It traveled over four lanes of traffic and a median before hitting a curb. Ginyard was ejected and pronounced dead at 3:27 a.m.

Jamaul Ginyard, Jawuan’s brother, said the investigators with the attorney general’s office had kept him informed and showed him video footage before they released it.

Ginyard didn’t like that the footage was shared to YouTube but said he understood it may be the office’s routine. He said he also asked about why the officer who initiated the police pursuit didn’t make a statement, and was told by investigators that it was Jeremenko’s right to decline.

Both Jamaul and Jawuan had moved out of their grandmother’s house, Jamaul said, but they’d still get together there two or three times a week to eat food and “enjoy a couple of laughs,” before Jawuan’s death.

“That’s a good day for us,” Jamaul said of his younger brother.

Their grandmother, Barbara Ginyard, said it’s been hard without Jawuan, especially because he had been close to his two daughters. She said they’d come over last weekend to visit her and had a “wonderful time together.”

“They loved their father, and he loved them,” she said.