Man charged with vehicular homicide after pursuit, crash on Middlebrook Pike

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. ( WATE ) — A man is facing multiple charges after a crash on Middlebrook Pike on Aug. 27 that resulted in the death of the passenger.

Deshawn Christopher Clemmons has been charged with vehicular homicide among other charges after a pursuit that ended in a crash on Middlebrook Pike near Phesants Glen Drive. The victim, identified as Kristi McCoy, was ejected from the vehicle during the crash and later died at the hospital from her injuries on Aug. 28.

According to the report, a law enforcement officer was driving a routine patrol in the parking lot of a grocery store on Middlebrook when they spotted a truck matching the description of a BOLO issued by the Knoxville Police Department for the vehicle’s registered owner, Clemmons, who had multiple warrants along with two known occasions where the listed vehicle fled from police.

The officer attempted to stop Clemmons after the vehicle rolled through a stop sign while exiting the grocery store parking lot, but the vehicle fled west on Middlebrook.

“The defendant then crossed over the median near 9224 Middlebrook Pike and began fleeing westbound in the eastbound lanes of travel before turning around to face the right direction,” the narrative states. “As the defendant approached the intersection of Middlebrook Pike and Pheasants Glen Drive he crossed the center median, lost control, and crashed into an embankment at 8833 Middlebrook Pike.”

McCoy, who had been ejected from the truck, was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center after the truck had come to a rest, while Clemmons exited the vehicle and was held at gunpoint by the officer, who gave him verbal commands to lay on the ground. Clemmons was then taken to UT Medical Center.

The report said Clemmons had eight outstanding warrants and was operating a vehicle with a suspended driver’s license. He was later interviewed by officers at the hospital, and agreed to speak after he was read his Miranda rights; the report states Clemmons “stated that he put crack in his marijuana and smoked it while they were in the parking lot.”

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