Driver going 115 mph fled because her uncle said ‘cops are mean,’ Florida police say

A driver sped away when she saw deputies behind her at a gas station because her “uncle told her cops are mean,” according to a Florida sheriff’s office.

A deputy followed an SUV into a Circle K parking lot after seeing it traveling 84 mph in a 55 mph zone in Summerfield at around 10:30 p.m. on June 1, according to an arrest report from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.

The vehicle drove “recklessly” through the Circle K parking lot, ran a stop sign and turned south onto U.S. Route 441, a north-south highway that runs along the Florida peninsula, the report says.

The deputy followed the SUV with lights and sirens activated, but the driver continued to speed away, reaching about 115 mph, the report says. As the driver tried to make a turn, the SUV crashed into a parked car and a residence located along the highway, according to the sheriff’s office.

The deputy tried to arrest the driver, who was the only person in the vehicle, the report says. The driver, who is 21, refused to get into the back of the patrol vehicle and freed her right hand from handcuffs, according to the report.

The deputy took her to the ground in order to reapply the handcuffs, the report says.

She later told the deputy that she saw him behind her at the Circle K and fled because her uncle had told her that “cops are mean,” the report says.

Her driver’s license had been suspended since Nov. 14 because of failure to pay a past traffic citation, according to the sheriff’s office. She was arrested and taken to an emergency department for evaluation, the report says.

She is charged with fleeing/eluding police at high speeds, operating a motor vehicle without a valid license and resisting an officer without violence, according to Marion County jail records. Her bond was set at $6,500.

Summerfield is about 60 miles northwest of Orlando.

This story was originally published June 6, 2023 at 12:38 PM with the headline "Driver going 115 mph fled because her uncle said ‘cops are mean,’ Florida police say."