Vollmer’s toddler daughter, strapped in a car seat, was with her at the time and was taken to Dayton Children’s Hospital. An unidentified woman was in the car with Alexander and was also taken to a hospital.
By Wednesday afternoon, $11,000 had been raised for the family of Vollmer through a GoFundMe page. It can be found by going to the website and searching her name.
“She was one of the sweetest, most caring, kind-hearted person,” the page says. “She was a terrific mother, and stepmother.”
The page says her daughter is 1 1/2-years-old.
A log obtained by the Dayton Daily News says that speeds in the chase reached 120 miles per hour. The log also says a few times officers were “backing off,” including about one minute before the crash, specifically saying, “backing off due to traffic.”
Dashcam video from Troy police shows Alexander’s car driving at a high rate a speed away from officers. Officers maintained a distance between them and the fleeing vehicle. The video shows it took officers about 40 seconds from when they passed Ross Road on state Route 202 to when they arrived on scene of the crash on U.S. Route 40.
A video showed that it took about 10 seconds for officers to get to Ross Road after the suspect passed the intersection.
Troy Police Chief Shawn McKinney told the Dayton Daily News that the chase would be reviewed like every chase, per department policy. Some newspaper readers have voiced concerns about police pursuits and the safety of the community.
Troy police policy states that “good judgment and common sense must be used in every vehicle pursuit engaged in by members of this department, keeping in mind it is of the utmost importance that the pursuit not unduly endanger the officer or others.”
“Officers will never be indifferent to the safety of the public, and every endeavor should be made to keep the hazards of the situation to a minimum. A pursuit is only justified when the necessity of apprehension outweighs the level of danger created by the pursuit,” the policy says.
Troy police previously said the chase began around 8 a.m. when officers in the area of Stonyridge Avenue and Imperial Court were looking for Alexander.
“The officer was aware that the suspect was in possession of a 9mm Glock pistol when stopped by Troy officers on March 7,” read a release from Troy police.
An officer saw a vehicle that he believed belonged to Alexander and attempted to stop him, but the suspect fled, eventually going south on state Route 202.
The Miami County Sheriff’s Office tried to stop the car using stop sticks at the intersection of state Route 202 and Ross Road. However, the suspect continued on until he crashed into Vollmer’s car at U.S. 40.
The log says that the vehicle “went around sticks” about 44 seconds before the crash.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating the crash.
The Troy Police manual says that police chases are prohibited unless there is probable cause to believe that the person being pursued is committing or has committed an offense that presents a risk of serious physical harm or death and there is an immediate need for apprehension.
The chief said because the review is in its early stages, he wasn’t able to comment whether police followed department policy.
Alexander was wanted because he failed to appear for a court date involving a March 7 incident in Piqua in which police were sent to Sweetbriar Avenue near Plymouth Avenue for a shots-fired call, according to a police narrative filed with the charges in Miami County Municipal Court.
The victim, who reportedly is the father of Alexander’s girlfriend, said Alexander “was yelling and arguing with him and then drove up toward the house and fired a shot,” a narrative of the police investigation says. “(The victim) stated he had no clue which way the bullet went, but Jalen fired the round at the front of the house.”
“I asked (the victim) if Jalen physically shot the gun toward him and he stated yes, he shot directly at me,” the document says.
The victim told police that he didn’t get along with Alexander and was warned that he had a gun at the start of the argument, the document says. The victim said that Alexander and his daughter came to the house to get money.
Officers were able to locate a spent shell casing on the road, the document says.
“Troy police located the suspect vehicle traveling near Imperial Court and initiated a traffic stop,” the narrative says. Piqua police responded to the traffic stop and spoke with Alexander and the daughter.
The daughter denied being in Piqua when she spoke to Piqua police, the report says, while Alexander admitted that they were in Piqua and got into a verbal argument with her father.
The document says while searching the car, police found a hidden compartment under the passenger seat, where a pistol was found.
“One round was located in the chamber and four rounds were found in the magazine,” the narrative says. “The magazine was a 31-round extended magazine.”
Both Alexander and the woman were arrested at that time, according to the police narrative filed in Alexander’s case. He was charged with felonious assault and misdemeanor child endangering. The misdemeanor charge says that Alexander “created a substantial risk to the health or safety of a one-year-old child by committing a felonious assault on another by discharging a firearm in the presence of the child.”
Court records show that a $10,000 bond was issued in the case. The Miami County Clerk of Courts’ office said a warrant was issued for Alexander after he missed a court date on March 17.
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