New video shows police chase that led to Nevada trooper’s death
Las Vegas police released more than five hours of body camera footage this week from officers involved in the vehicle chase that led to Nevada Highway Patrol trooper Micah May’s death in July.
On July 27, police said Douglas Claiborne, 60, flashed a foot-long knife at a man before stealing his car. Claiborne was spotted about 30 minutes later by the Highway Patrol in the stolen car near Interstate 15 and the Speedway Boulevard, leading to a police chase along the interstate and several North Las Vegas roads.
After North Las Vegas police unsuccessfully deployed stop sticks six times, trooper May deployed a seventh set of stop sticks near the Charleston Boulevard exit. Claiborne drove around the sticks and hit May with his vehicle.
The new footage showed the involvement of nine Metropolitan Police Department officers, including pursuing Claiborne in North Las Vegas, attempting to deploy a K-9 and traffic control after the shooting.
K-9 brought out
In one video, K-9 Hunter’s owner was speeding in the carpool lane on I-15 southbound to join the chase. The officer broadcast on the radio that if Claiborne gets out of the car, Hunter would be deployed.
The moment when May was struck by the car was blacked out, but the officer driving was heard gasping.
“Roll medical! We just had an officer hit,” he frantically called into the radio.
A mile and a half down the interstate, Claiborne’s tires were seen falling apart, and K-9 Hunter was brought out of the car. Gunshots rang out.
The officer holding Hunter asked, “Where’s the officer at?” referring to May.
“In the car,” several officers replied.
Claiborne alive after shooting
In another officer’s video, a dispatcher can be heard asking Metro’s helicopter to perform an unusual move at the request of the Highway Patrol.
“They want you to land and they need you to transport,” she said.
May was taken to University Medical Center by Metro’s helicopter. He died there two days later.
Las Vegas Fire Department rescuers asked a Metro officer who was searching for shell casings for help moving a vehicle involved in the pursuit.
“The suspect’s here,” a firefighter said, pointing to the vehicle in which Claiborne was shot. “We need to transport him. He still has a rhythm.”
But the Clark County coroner’s office pronounced Claiborne dead at the scene from gunshot wounds to the head and torso.
The officers who shot at him were identified as trooper Joseph DellaBella, 51, and Nevada Parole and Probation officers Derek Simmons, 30, Garrett Dix, 28, and Luis Villanueva, 28.
The district attorney’s office confirmed Wednesday that it is reviewing the case and a fact finding review is expected.
“We will review the actions of the officers as we do in every fatal officer-involved-shooting,” the district attorney’s office wrote in a statement. “In the coming months, after law enforcement completes its investigation and we conduct an independent review, we anticipate holding a Police Fatality Public Fact-finding Review.”
Contact Sabrina Schnur at sschnur@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur on Twitter.
