Video shows chase, PIT maneuver that led to Moore man's death
Dashboard camera video released Friday shows a high-speed chase in June that ended with a man's death when a State Highway Patrol trooper forced his car to spin out in Moore County.
Authorities say 22-year-old Shonquelle Barrett tried to avoid a Booze It and Lose It checkpoint in Southern Pines on June 29, prompting Sgt. James Stahl to give chase.
Barrett can be seen on the video running a red light, cutting through a gas station and driving in the wrong lane to get around other vehicles.
"I'm going to try to get up on him, and as soon as he slows down, I'll try to PIT," Stahl says over his radio, referring to a precision immobilization technique, or PIT maneuver.
The move involves bumping a rear fender of a fleeing vehicle to cause it to spin out.
The Highway Patrol's policy prohibits PIT maneuvers at speeds above 55 mph unless a trooper thinks the fleeing driver has committed a violent crime or other circumstances exist that warrant the use of deadly force.
"It's going to be over 90 [mph]," Stahl says as the chase winds through back roads and onto U.S. Highway 1.
"Use your discretion. Use your discretion," he is told.
A crash report obtained by WRAL News shows Stahl and Barrett were both driving 80 mph on U.S. 1 in Aberdeen when Stahl used the PIT maneuver.
Barrett lost control of his 1999 Honda Accord, and it skidded off the highway and clipped a utility pole before slamming into a tree at 50 mph, according to the report. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Superior Court Judge James Webb on Friday ordered the release of the dashcam video in the interest of transparency and full disclosure.
Barrett's family watched the video for the first time later in the day and said Stahl didn't have to use the PIT maneuver to stop her son.
"He could have got him way before that. He had his mother's address on the car. He could have come to the house and got him," said his father, Ulysses Barrett.
"You have the tag [number]. It gave you information. It gave you a name. It gave you an address. He wasn't a felon. He didn't murder anybody," his mother, Charlene Ross said, shaking her head. "I don't know. He didn't rob anybody. Their life wasn't at stake. Their life wasn't in any danger. So I'm just not understanding.
Ross has said she was on the phone with Barrett during the chase trying to persuade him to pull over. She said he was worried about being arrested because he had a revoked license, no insurance and an expired tag.
"He said, 'Mom, I'm in a high-speed chase.' I told him to pull over. I said, 'I rather you have your life,'" she said.
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Since his death, she has lobbied for a state law prohibiting law enforcement agencies from using the PIT maneuver.
Highway Patrol officials declined to comment Friday on the video, stating the State Bureau of Investigation is still reviewing the case.
Stahl remains on administrative duty.
