The 19-year-old driver arrested after a crash that killed two people faces new charges of aggravated fleeing and eluding.
The Broward Sheriff’s Office is investigating whether deputies were pursuing the driver before the crash on Sistrunk Boulevard west of Fort Lauderdale.
Gavin Dorvil, of Lauderdale Lakes, was arrested while at Broward Health Medical Center two days after the crash and has since been booked into the Broward Main Jail. He was initially arrested on two counts of vehicular homicide and one count of reckless driving causing serious bodily injury and is now facing eight additional charges, Broward County court records show.
Shortly before 4 p.m. Aug. 11, Dorvil was speeding in a 2023 Tesla Model 3 west on Northwest Sixth Street when he T-boned a 2023 Dodge Durango that was heading south on Northwest 27th Avenue, the Sheriff’s Office previously said in a news release. The force of that crash caused the Dodge to crash into a Chevrolet Trax, which was flipped upside down.
Dorvil’s Tesla and the Dodge continued southwest and crashed through the fence of a nearby cemetery, where they stopped, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Video from a witness shared on Facebook showed bystanders working together to pull two people out of the Dodge, as deputies pulled Dorvil from the Tesla.
Five people, including Dorvil, were taken to the hospital after the crash, where Lisa Jackson, the driver of the Dodge, and one of her passengers Geraldine Francis were pronounced dead. Jackson’s second passenger, a minor girl, was in critical condition at the time. The Chevrolet driver was also injured.
An AR-15-style pistol and several rounds of ammunition were found outside of the Tesla after the crash, a probable cause affidavit for Dorvil’s arrest said.
Before the crash, video showed two marked BSO cars “following closely behind” Dorvil from the area of Northwest 27th Avenue, onto Northwest Sixth Street, then onto Northwest 24th Avenue, according to the affidavit.
Deputies were ‘following’ driver who crashed at 85 mph on Sistrunk Boulevard, killing 2, record says
The Sheriff’s Office previously said that two deputies are on “restricted administrative assignment” as Internal Affairs investigates whether they were pursuing the Tesla before the crash.
Many law enforcement agencies, including BSO, permit chases only when there’s reasonable belief a forcible felony was committed.
In total, Dorvil is facing three counts of aggravated fleeing and eluding, two counts of vehicular homicide, one count of reckless driving causing serious bodily injury and five misdemeanor counts of reckless driving causing injury or property damage, court records show. The State Attorney’s Office filed the additional charges Tuesday morning.
According to the state’s information, Dorvil fled from the deputies who were in marked law enforcement vehicles and had their lights and sirens activated.
Dorvil’s arraignment is scheduled for Aug. 28. His defense attorney did not return a voicemail or email seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.
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