The Dallas Police Department released video footage on Friday of a high-speed police chase and officer-involved shooting that happened three days earlier.
Officers were surveilling a stolen U-Haul when the driver of the truck allegedly intentionally rammed the police vehicle and took off, according to Police Chief Eddie Garcia. The force of the crash pushed the undercover surveillance vehicle into a fire hydrant, causing the airbags to deploy.
Officers in a marked police vehicle pursued the suspect vehicle through a North Dallas neighborhood and onto the southbound lanes of the Dallas North Tollway.
The truck can be seen in the video traveling at a high rate of speed, crashing into multiple vehicles during the police chase. The driver exited the Tollway at the Wycliff exit and continued driving at a high rate of speed. At one point, the vehicle careened through an intersection, narrowly missing a DART bus.
The driver eventually crashed into several vehicles on Lemmon Avenue, causing the truck to jump the median and crash into a tree. The suspect exited the vehicle and apparently fled into a hangar at the nearby Frontiers of Flight Museum.
The suspect, later identified as 41-year-old Ryan Taylor, allegedly opened fire on the pursuing officers. Officer Keenan Craven returned fire, striking the suspect in the leg.
Taylor was taken to a local hospital for treatment of his injuries and has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated assault on a public servant, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, and evading arrest in a motor vehicle. More charges are likely to be filed in connection with the incident.
According to Garcia, the suspect has a lengthy police record.
No police officers were hurt in the incident, and no drivers involved in crashes with the suspect vehicle were seriously injured.
The incident, which began in District 13, led by Council Member Gay Donnell Willis, is another example of the rampant crime in Dallas. So far this year, homicides are up 12.2% over the same period last year, according to a July 27 DPD crime briefing.
Meanwhile, a shortage of police officers is hampering the Dallas Police Department’s best efforts to fight crime. The City needs approximately 900 more officers, according to a recent report.
The crime rate in Downtown Dallas is exceptionally high, especially when compared to the downtown area of neighboring Fort Worth, which has dedicated police patrols and private security in place to protect its city center.