Police dog mauls face of woman hiding after a high-speed chase, Indiana cops say

A police K-9 mauled a 19-year-old woman’s face as she allegedly hid from authorities after a high-speed chase in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Police say Trinity Fleming sped away from a traffic stop at 12:30 a.m. Monday, leading officers on a pursuit that at times cut through neighborhood streets, and reached speeds of 100 mph, WPTA reported.

Officers eventually deployed stop sticks, popping the vehicle’s tires. Fleming continued driving with flat tires across several yards before bailing out of the car and hiding in a bush, the station reported.

Police searched for Fleming with the help of a K-9. The dog found her in the bush and attacked, latching onto her face and head until the dog’s handler caught up, outlets report.

Fleming is undergoing reconstructive plastic surgery, according to her mother, Jennifer Fleming.

Fleming’s mother posted pictures of her daughter’s injuries to Facebook, claiming police brutality.

“In the United States we have a real problem,” she said. “This dog was allowed to maim my child.”

Fleming is facing two felony charges, resisting a law enforcement vehicle and possession of needles, the Journal Gazette reported, plus several misdemeanor charges including reckless driving, and leaving the scene of an accident.

Fleming’s mother believes her daughter isn’t to blame for the dangerous chase, insisting that she was a passenger in the vehicle — and the actual driver got away, she told the Gazette.

“I feel like the list of charges are retaliation for the social media photos I’ve posted. How does a traffic violation turn into a face mutilation?” Fleming’s mother said. “My daughter is telling me she was not driving the vehicle.”

Fort Wayne police are defending their actions, WPTA reported.

“We don’t like to see this kind of thing happen, but again, the dog has a purpose. All [Fleming] had to do was give up. All [she] had to do was pull over. All [she] had to do was come out of that bush when they heard officers in the area,” Sgt. Sofia Rosales-Scatena told the station.

This story was originally published November 18, 2020 at 8:56 PM with the headline "Police dog mauls face of woman hiding after a high-speed chase, Indiana cops say."