On January 31, Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office (MDSO) detectives tried to conduct a traffic stop to arrest alleged fentanyl trafficker Anthony Medina, whom police identified following a seven-month-long multiagency investigation, according to a press release from the department.
But when the 33-year-old fled from officers, they pursued him in a high-speed chase — during which Medina "intentionally struck a K-9 SUV," causing it to crash into a concrete wall in Miami's Little River neighborhood, according to the release.
Fire-rescue treated the deputy driving the SUV at the scene and later released him. But the K-9, Roxi, suffered "severe injuries" from the incident and had to be euthanized, MDSO spokesperson Angel Rodriguez tells New Times.
"She was paralyzed from mid-back down and in extreme pain," Rodriguez said. "Therefore, she had to be euthanized."
Roxi wasn't the only collateral damage in the chase.It is with a heavy heart that I share the news that K9 Roxi passed away. Roxi was a true hero who dedicated her life to protecting and serving. Her legacy will live on in the lives she touched and the hearts she protected.
— Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz (@Sheriff_Rosie) February 3, 2025
Rest in peace, K9 Roxi. Your duty is done, and your… pic.twitter.com/Xrcf5CzlaK
During the pursuit, a MDSO car was "involved in a traffic crash with a civilian" in Miami's Edgewater neighborhood near Margaret Pace Park, according to the press release. The bystander, an adult male, was brought to a hospital in stable condition. Another man, a pedestrian, was also injured as a result of the chase and brought to a hospital after "he avoided getting struck by the vehicles."
It remains unclear whether the two bystanders are still in the hospital or their condition. As of Monday afternoon, Rodriguez tells New Times the department has yet to receive an update.
The pursuit ended westbound on State Road 836 and NW 12th Avenue, where Medina and two others were taken into custody. Medina was charged with trafficking fentanyl, possession of a firearm as a convicted felon, and fleeing and eluding police.
Officers found 12 grams of suspected psilocybin mushrooms, about four pounds of marijuana, 20 boxes of suspected THC cartridges, 14 packs of marijuana edibles, and one firearm in Medina's vehicle. (Though the MDSO's press release identified Medina as "the main supplier of a fentanyl trafficking organization" in the county, it's unclear whether officers found any fentanyl in the car.)
At least 34 people were killed as a result of police chases across Florida in 2024, according to IncarcerNation.com, an online database that tracks police-involved fatalities such as shootings and beatings using public records, online news articles, police statements, and family or eyewitness statements.
Accurate and complete data on police chases, crashes, and deaths is notoriously hard to find. Although the federal government collects data on fatal crashes, its system relies on the accuracy of information from individual police departments, some of which don't gather or release this data publicly.
A recent investigation by the San Francisco Chronicle, which used data from the federal government, private research organizations, and news reports, found that at least 3,336 people across the nation were killed in police pursuits between 2017 and 2022. More than half of those killed were bystanders or passengers in fleeing vehicles.
While many states and law enforcement agencies have updated their policies over the last decade to allow chases only in narrow circumstances, Florida recently relaxed its rules — granting state troopers more discretion to initiate a car chase and allowing them to speed, drive on the wrong side of the road, or even go in the opposite direction.
