Deadly ICE pursuit sparks controversy over federal-local law enforcement communication

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Questions mount about how a high-speed chase outside Savannah claimed a teacher’s life and nearly killed a family of four.

A high-speed pursuit by Immigration and Customs Enforcement has reignited a contentious debate about federal and local law enforcement cooperation after a deadly car crash Monday left a beloved teacher dead and raised serious questions about public safety protocols.

The crash, which occurred on Whitefield Avenue less than a mile from a school, killed Dr. Linda Davis, a special education teacher. A pregnant woman and her two young children narrowly escaped death when Davis’s vehicle shielded them from the path of the fleeing suspect’s car.

Caitlin Terry was driving near the scene when the pursuit unfolded at high speed. She described the harrowing moment when a vehicle came flying around her.

“I was just trying to make sure that I wasn’t hitting anybody as I was making my turn, and then once I had a chance to look in my rear view, that’s when I saw the cops flying around from where the school was,” Terry said.

Terry’s car was directly in the path of the chaos. Dr. Davis’s vehicle crossed the median on Whitefield Avenue, placing itself between Terry’s family and the collision.

“If she wasn’t there, my baby—I’m 8 months pregnant—my baby would’ve died, my 3-year-old would’ve died. I don’t know if I would’ve made it, and my husband would’ve gotten that call about ‘hey your whole family’s dead,’” Terry said.

The tragedy has sparked heated debate among local leaders about who bears responsibility for the crash.

Alderman Alicia Miller Blakely has pointed directly at ICE’s pursuit as the cause of the deadly collision. Meanwhile, Republican congressman Buddy Carter has blamed Democratic policies.

But Savannah Mayor Van Johnson, a former sheriff’s deputy, has focused his criticism on a different culprit: the lack of communication between federal and local law enforcement agencies.

“The rules have changed. We’ve seen that in Minneapolis, we see it in cities across the country, and as evident by the fact that our local law enforcement agencies did not know it,” Johnson said.

Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley echoed concerns about the pursuit itself, suggesting there were safer alternatives available to law enforcement.

“I really feel with the technology that’s available to law enforcement today and our ability to identify folks, that there’s a better way to apprehend folks without putting the community at risk and our officers at risk,” Hadley said Monday.

Mayor Johnson expanded on that point, emphasizing the critical importance of coordination.

“If law enforcement knows about it, then we can prioritize local public safety. It appears or seems that federal agencies either don’t care or don’t have a propensity to care about the local community,” Johnson said.

According to Mayor Johnson, he has not reached out to Homeland Security because the incident occurred just outside Savannah’s city limits.

Chatham County Police Department says their communication with ICE has been minimal—limited to only two traffic stops conducted by ICE in June 2025.

The gap in communication raises serious questions about how federal and local authorities can better coordinate to prevent similar tragedies in the future.