SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — A Sanford woman is facing multiple felony charges after investigators say she intentionally hit a Florida Highway Patrol trooper with her car while running from a traffic stop.
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According to FHP, a trooper was conducting speed enforcement on Interstate-4 near State Road 434 Sunday afternoon when a silver sedan passed by at more than 100 miles-per-hour in a posted 60 mile-per-hour zone.
The trooper attempted to stop the driver, later identified as 38-year-old Latoya Bedford of Sanford, but she continued to speed away westbound on I-4 before exiting on Maitland Ave.
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According to FHP, at one point, Bedford attempted to make a U-turn, which is when the pursuing deputy performed a “P.I.T.” maneuver to immobilize the car.
With Bedford’s vehicle pointing to the south and the FHP cruiser pointing to the north, the trooper said they exited their patrol car and began shouting at Bedford to stop and get out of the car.
According to the incident report, Bedford “looked directly at” the trooper while ignoring their orders then drove directly at the trooper at a high rate of speed.
The trooper said the front left side of Bedford’s car struck the cruiser’s driver’s side door, pinning the trooper between the door and vehicle frame.
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Dashcam video released by FHP shows Bedford again speeding away to the south on Maitland Ave.
According to the report, despite being injured, the trooper got back into their cruiser and continued pursuing Bedford, but she didn’t get far.
The Dashcam video shows Bedford ultimately lose control of the car and crash into a business.
Bedford was detained and taken to AdventHealth in Altamonte Springs where she was cleared by doctors. While searching her car, troopers say they found a set of brass knuckles with a spring-assisted knife hidden in the driver’s side door.
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Bedford faces a long list of felony charges including aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, aggravated fleeing or eluding police with an injury or damage, failure to stop at a crash involving an injury, and possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon.
The injured trooper drove himself to a local hospital to be treated for injuries described in the report as non-life-threatening.
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