A team of Florida police officers have some serious explaining to do. After abandoning innocent bystanders to die during a chase, three officers have been arrested for felony Leaving the Scene of a Crash Involving Death. Four more are facing charges of Official Misconduct.

These seven West Palm Beach Police Department officers engaged in a high speed chase with a stolen Kia Stinger. They chased the Kia up to 120 mph in a two marked Ram patrol truck and one Ford Interceptor Utility crossover. The pursuit lasted 12 minutes. None of the seven turned on their body cameras or radioed dispatch to warn other units about the chase. They even crossed out of their jurisdiction and into Boynton Beach without warning BBPD. But that’s far from the worst of it.

At an intersection, the driver of the stolen Kia lost control and slammed headlong into a Toyota Corolla coming the other way. The Kia’s driver was injured, but got out of the stolen car and fled on foot.

None of the WPBPD officers chased him. But again, that’s far from the worst of it. They didn’t bother even checking the wrecked Corolla to see who was inside and how badly they were hurt. The officers still didn’t radio the BBPD about the crash. They didn’t offer any medical attention or even call an ambulance.

The WPBPD officers abandon the injured bystanders and flee

The WPBPD officers scattered and fled the scene of the accident. One of the Ram patrol trucks drove around the Kia Stinger wreckage and had to pass directly by the wrecked Toyota Corolla. Inside that Corolla were Marcia Pochette (57) and her pregnant daughter (Janice Woods, 27). Both of them were still alive, but wouldn’t be for long.

Later that night, local BBPD officers found the women and raced them to the hospital. But they didn’t discover the crash in time. Both women died.

The three officers under arrest are Austin B. Danielovich, Pierre F. Etienne, and Christopher C. Rekdahl. They were in the Ram truck that drove directly by the injured women. Presumably, the State Attorney suspects these officers saw there were people in the car before they fled. Those three officers could face up to 65 years in prison.

The officers in the other vehicles were Michael E. Borgen, William L. Loayza, Brandan C. Stedfelt, and Darien J. Thomas. They’re only being charged with Official Misconduct, with a maximum prison sentence of five years. While they didn’t actually drive by the Corolla, they must have known someone was driving the car at the time of the crash. And they didn’t witness anyone climb out before they fled.

State Attorney Cox said, “The police officers’ actions are a disturbing betrayal of the public trust…Law enforcement officers have a duty to the public they swore to uphold. No one is above the law, and this office will pursue justice wherever the facts and the law lead.” See the latest coverage in the video embedded below: