Tragedy struck Waldo, Florida, on April 27, 2024 when a high-speed chase led to a fatal accident, taking the lives of four teenage boys. Waldo is located around 12 miles north of Gainesville, Florida.
The incident began when a stolen Honda CRV was pursued by Florida State Troopers. In the course of the chase, the troopers used a Precision Immobilization Technique (PIT maneuver), causing the vehicle to lose control, roll over, and collide with a concrete utility pole. This collision resulted in fatal injuries for the car’s occupants.
The victims, aged 14 to 17, were later identified. Two of them, Jabril Chevers and Lawrence McClendon Jr., succumbed to their injuries at UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville. The other two teens, including 16-year-old Taleak Roberts and another boy whose identity remains undisclosed, were declared dead at the crash site. Alachua County Fire Rescue reported that it took more than 90 minutes to extricate the victims from the wreckage, described as being “entwined around a concrete utility pole.”
The incident compounded the McClendon family’s recent loss as Lawrence’s elder teenage brother, Jermaine Godbolt, had been fatally shot only a month earlier. In response to these tragedies, the local community rallied around the mourning families, creating GoFundMe campaigns to assist with funeral costs and offering tributes to the prematurely ended lives.
Lawrence McClendon, a talented sophomore and an exceptional defensive player in his high school football team, was fondly remembered by his coach, Ed Johnson, as a spirited and beloved team member.
In the aftermath, Bradford County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Col. Brad Smith stated that their vehicles were unable to match the high speeds of the stolen Honda, estimated at over 100 mph. This led to the decision to withdraw near the county line. However, a state trooper continued the pursuit, observing during the chase that some passengers in the vehicle seemed to be donning ski masks. It was later reported that two of the teens were wearing ankle monitors and three had active warrants.
“[The stolen vehicle] did start to pull over on the shoulder of the road, but before they came to a complete stop, they accelerated again, and that is when the chase was on,” Deputy Col. Smith said, as reported by Main Street Daily News.
As the families of the victims and the community come to terms with this tragedy, the Florida Highway Patrol has launched a criminal investigation to examine the circumstances of the incident.
