Trump teases pardons for DC officers convicted in police chase death
President
Donald Trump suggested two
Washington, D.C., police officers would be released from prison after they were convicted of killing a 20-year-old man during an unauthorized police chase.
Trump has been harshly criticized for
pardoning Jan. 6 defendants who assaulted police officers but said Tuesday that planned pardons of D.C. police Terence Sutton and Andrew Zabavsky indicate his true stance in support of law enforcement.
"They arrested the two officers (Sutton and Zabavsky) and put them in jail for going after a criminal. A rough criminal, by the way," Trump said in a preview of the order. "And I’m actually releasing [them]. I am the friend of police, more than any president that’s ever been in this office."
The case in question occurred in October 2020, near the peak of that year's Black Lives Matter protest movement. The incident began when Sutton attempted to speak with 20-year-old Karon Hylton-Brown, who then fled from him on an electric moped. A three-minute chase ensued, which ended in a crash that led to Hylton-Brown's death.
The case sparked protests in the nation's capital ahead of the election. Sutton was later convicted in September 2024 of second-degree murder and sentenced to 5.5 years in prison, while Zabavsky got four years for his role in the incident. It was the first time a Washington police officer had ever been convicted of murder.
Police officers strongly defended both men during the trial, and the DC Police Union released a statement saying it was working with Trump on the pardons.
"We are actively working with the White House and President Trump to address two glaring miscarriages of justice involving DC police officers, Officer Terrance Sutton and Lieutenant Andrew Zabavsky, who were wrongly convicted of murder," says the statement, which was obtained by the Washington Examiner. "These officers — men of integrity and dedication — were targeted by corrupt prosecutors who weaponized the legal system against them."
However, the same statement criticizes Trump's pardon of Jan. 6 defendants, expressing "dismay" for those who assaulted police officers during the Capitol riot.
David Shurtz, an attorney for Hylton-Brown's family, said Trump was misinformed about the case.
"A jury of Sutton's and Zabavsky's peers listened to all the evidence and found Officer Sutton guilty of second-degree murder and Sutton and Zabavsky guilty of obstruction of justice and conspiracy," he said. "Last time I checked, juries were supposed to decide guilt or innocence."
He said the president is only listening to one side of the story, namely that of the Fraternal Order of Police.
"Trump is being given bad information by a corrupt police department," he said. "But Trump should know better that citizens who hear the evidence are better triers of facts than political hacks."
