Former police officer, city of Tempe sued after woman lost her unborn child in car crash

Yahoo

05-02-2025

A woman whose child was stillborn following a May 2024 crash with a police officer is suing him and the city of Tempe as a DUI arrest of the former officer resurfaces.
Plaintiff Jade Shone's wrongful death suit against former Tempe police officer Zachary Hyde and the city contends he was negligent, careless and reckless when he sped through a red light in Mesa after immediately turning his sirens on. The suit further argues Tempe failed to provide oversight and training for their officer.
Filed Jan. 27, the suit seeks an excess of $300,000 in damages, citing how the crash resulted in Shone being injured in her neck, back and abdomen, and how the heartbeat of the child she was expecting, whom she named Isla, stopped. Isla died after the healthy, viable fetus in the 22nd week of gestation had no oxygen when the placenta tore and bled as a result of the crash, according to the suit.
On May 24, Shone was driving northbound in a 2020 Kia Forte on Dobson and Broadway roads on a green light and wearing a seat belt, according to the suit. The Ford Explorer police vehicle Hyde was driving eastbound on Broadway struck her, the suit said.
A Mesa police report stated that both Shone and Hyde were observing their respective speed limits, and that there were multiple airbag deployments in the Kia. The police report listed a second person whose vehicle was struck, and both Shone and this other injured person were taken to nearby Banner Desert Medical Center.
"By failing to ensure it was safe to enter the intersection, Defendant Hyde failed to drive with due regard for the safety of all persons and exhibited reckless disregard for the safety of others," reads the suit.
The Tempe Police Department declined to comment about the suit, noting the city is a defendant. Hyde could not be immediately reached for comment.
Citing an Arizona statute on emergency vehicles that states they may 'proceed past a red or stop signal or stop sign but only after slowing down as necessary for safe operation,' the suit contends the plaintiff 'had no time to react' to Hyde's actions.
Shone and Isla's father "experienced tremendous pain, grief, sorrow, anguish, stress, shock, and mental suffering since the death of" their expected child and will continue to be devastated the rest of their lives, the suit argues.
Other damages listed in the suit relate to lost wages and other financial losses, including Isla's funeral expenses.
In July 2024, then-officer Hyde was arrested by the Arizona Department of Public Safety while off duty and charged with driving under the influence. The Tempe Police Department immediately placed Hyde on administrative leave pending a departmental investigation.
The statement they released then noted, "Any time a criminal investigation is brought to our attention about one of our officers, we take the matter very seriously."
Because the city is a party to civil litigation, they said they could not comment beyond the above.
A DUI offense report from July 31 by DPS detailed how Hyde was pulled over in a Mercedes-Benz that showed damage to the front bumper and had been seen swerving. Hyde, the report continued, showed slurred speech, watery eyes, the smell of alcohol and struggled to walk after exiting his vehicle.
According to the report, Hyde told the DPS officer he had two beers three hours prior. A breathalyzer test determined he had an alcohol level of .205, according to the DPS report.
At the time of Hyde's arrest, DPS mentioned he had been honored by the nonprofit Mothers Against Drunk Driving the month prior. A photo shared on Tempe Police Department's Facebook showed Hyde standing next to Tempe Police Chief Kenneth McCoy, smiling with a crystal award in his hands at the MADD event.
Hyde is no longer employed with Tempe police, according to the department. After his arrest, Hyde was put on administrative leave, the department said. He had been with the force for two and a half years after having been an officer in New York, the department added.
Shone is being represented by personal injury lawyer Alicia Funkhouser of the Phoenix-based law firm Ely, Bettini, Ulman, Rosenblatt & Ozer.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suit: Tempe officer ran light, crashed into woman who then lost baby