Florence County Sheriff releases dash cam footage of deadly chase

Dashcam footage released by the Florence County Sheriff's Office showed the target of a high-speed chase May 15 drove off the road, crashed and died just outside the Freedom Estates community on Freedom Boulevard.

The officer who pursued the driver in a white Mercedes turned his lights on when the speed of the car reached 70 mph, the officer in the video said. He started following the car around South Vance Drive.

The deputy tried to stop the driver for "erratic driving," according to a May 16 sheriff's office press release.

The chase began near the MUSC Florence Health Medical Center and the video showed some traffic on the streets.

The driver being chased used the median to pass by another car where the streetlights end on Freedom Boulevard. The officer also used the median to pass the same vehicle.

"He ain't gonna last much longer," the officer said. "Driving like he's driving he's going to wreck himself."

A few seconds after that the driver being chased went off the road at the second curve before the intersection of National Cemetery Road and Freedom Boulevard.

"He went down into an embankment," the officer said over his radio.

The officer then parked his car on the side of the road and got out. He approached a wooded area where the driver being chased went. The car could not be seen in the video at this point. The driver being chased did not hit any other cars in the video.