Police shot dead a university student on her birthday after she ploughed her car into a crowd. The 22-year-old was celebrating her birthday when she drove her car into a police officer.
She was then shot dead by one of the officer’s colleagues in harrowing footage filmed in Miami Beach, Florida.
The chilling video shows Cariann Hithon, from Maryland, USA, crashing into several cars on Sunday as people watch from cafes.
Crowds gather around her damaged car, but then Cariann’s car starts to move and ploughs into a police officer standing in front of her vehicle.
Several shots are then fired into the car, which can be heard in the harrowing video.
Both Cariann and the police officer she crashed into were taken to hospital, where the 22-year-old, who was reportedly drunk, later died.
The detective, David Cajuso, has now been discharged from hospital.
John Butchko, a retired homicide detective, was in one of the cars Cariann had hit in the initial crash.
He told NBC Philidelphia: “It played out like a movie set with people running, screaming, car crashes, gunshots, an injured officer lying on his back on the ground — all within a minute.”
Both Butchko and his passenger Sean Ellsworth suffered minor injuries in the crash. Police have launched an investigation into the shooting.
Cariann was a student at Temple University and was studying political science and philosophy.
Her father, retired Navy Captain Cary Hilton, said: ” It’s hard to express the amount of pain and distress we feel.
“I can’t explain why she wouldn’t have listened.”
A 22-year-old man, Ryan Jerrell Lucas, was questioned by police. (Credit: Informationng)
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