Ohio Agency Sued Over High-Speed Pursuit

The Miami Township (Ohio) Police Department must defend a lawsuit filed by a grade-school teacher who was critically injured when a burglary suspect fleeing from officers struck her vehicle.

Officers were pursuing Anthony Barnhart on July 11, 2011. Barnhart was driving southbound on 741 at about 80 mph when he crossed the center line and struck Pamela Argabrite's vehicle. Barnhart was killed in the crash.

Argabrite's attorney, Kenneth Ignozzi, said pursuing officers didn’t follow their own policies and procedures.

"It was clearly reckless to engage in that kind of pursuit through that many red lights, through that many stop signs at that speed at noon, the busiest time of the day," Ignozzi told the Dayton Daily News .