Local News

Police Crack Down On Street Racing

ACCOKEEK, Md. (WJZ) ― A renewed crackdown across the mid-Atlantic is targeting street racers more than a week after a deadly crash killed eight people.

Kai Jackson has more on a series of new arrests as one of the victims speaks out.

Two drivers in northern Virginia face charges and their cars have been seized.  This is the latest in a series of steps to ensure safety on our roads.

Police in Fairfax County seized the two cars after an officer spotted two drivers revving their engines and spinning their tires late Tuesday night.  It's the latest in a crackdown by police and lawmakers against illegal street racing. 

The practice came into the spotlight in Maryland earlier this month in Accokeek.  That's when a car driving down the road plowed into a crowd of spectators.  Eight died and seven others, including Craig Simms, were hurt.

"I'm in Shock Trauma and I don't know why," he said.

Simms has endured three surgeries while recovering here in Baltimore and remembers little about that night.

"I don't recall hearing the cars slamming on the brakes.  I don't recall tires screeching.  I don't recall anyone saying `Get out of the way,' anything.  All I remember is laying on the ground and my friend holding me, saying, `Don't move.  Your leg is busted up,'" he said.

But some may say Simms was one of the lucky ones.

"It's not a tragedy just that I lost my brother but for all who died out here," said Wanda Woodland.

Now lawmakers here in Maryland are targeting what some call a sub-culture.  Police in Prince George's County want to use traffic cameras and helicopters to monitor hot spots.

"It's about trying to to narrow the 24-hour time period so we can know about and proactively engage," said Chief Melvin High.

But a race insider who spoke with Eyewitness News says police have their work cut out for them.

"This is well-organized," he said.  "By the time these guys are down the road, the police have lost sight of them and you can't catch them."

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