Boston police officers chased a car after being told to stop. Minutes later, three teens died in a crash.

Boston Globe

08-04-2025

What happened next was by all accounts a tragedy, but one that continues to raise questions about the chase and the responsibility of the police officers involved. Three of the four occupants of the car, all teenagers, died after accelerating to
speeds that reached 106 miles per hour and then crashing as police continued to follow them on Morrissey.
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More than a year later, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin R. Hayden's office has released investigative records in response to a Globe request that for the first time detail the specific occurrences of that night. The office declined to bring any criminal charges, though it did not provide any explanation for its decision or any of its own findings on the investigation. The case was not brought before a grand jury. Boston police spokesperson Mariellen Burns said an internal affairs investigation is ongoing.
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That has left at least one family member of those involved yearning for more accountability.
From left, Tony Winslow Jr., Jessica Adams, and Tony Winslow Sr. wore memorial shirts displaying images of 15-year-old Troy Winslow, who died along with two other teenagers in a January 2024 high-speed crash in Boston following a police pursuit.
Erin Clark/Globe Staff
'These were children. The cops were told to stop. Twice,' said Jessica Adams, 35, the mother of 15-year-old Troy Winslow, one of those who died. 'They died because people weren't following orders.'
The others were Kevin Lemus-Davila, 17, of Roslindale, whom State Police said was the driver, and 14-year old Immanuel A. Brooks, a passenger. The survivor, who was 15 at the time of the crash and whose
name has not been released by authorities, was the only person wearing a seatbelt, records show.
Troy considered the survivor his best friend, having known him since the fifth grade. They were freshmen at Madison Park Technical Vocational High School.
Brooks was an eighth-grader at what was then known as Jeremiah E. Burke High School, which Troy and the survivor had previously attended. Lemus-Davila was a 10th grader at the McKinley School, according to relatives and online records.
Lemus-Davila had not been a major part of Troy's social circle before the crash, according to his family. He struggled with depression, his sister told the Globe around the time of the crash. He died three days after the police chase at Boston Medical Center, records show.
Relatives of the other teens did not respond to recent Globe requests for interviews.
Champagnie and Farley remain on administrative duty. According to department policy, that means
they are not allowed to have their department-issued guns and cannot wear their uniforms pending the outcome of the investigation.
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But as the internal affairs investigation has drawn out, it has directed attention to others the police officers were involved in, and a lawyer in at least one of those cases has questioned whether the officers broke chase policies or were dishonest with investigators. The Boston Police Department has refused to comply with a court order to turn over internal affairs documents on Champagnie,
which has imperiled an unrelated criminal case he is involved in, according to the defense lawyer in that case who has sought to learn more about Champagnie's history. The officer sought records specific on Champagnie because Farley is not involved in that case. A hearing to determine whether the department is in contempt is scheduled for April 15.
What is clear from the district attorney's investigation, according to
Boston and State Police reports and related video obtained by the Globe, is that the crash occurred after the officers continued to follow the car with lights flashing even after being told to stand down, despite longstanding department policy forbidding exactly that.
The policy, in place since 1999, states that if a supervisor gives an order to discontinue a pursuit, officers should turn off their lights and siren and stop following the vehicle. The policy says it's better to let someone escape than to 'unnecessarily jeopardize' the safety of the public and officers.
Champagnie and Farley told investigators they made the decision to follow because they believed the Hyundai was being driven so dangerously that other motorists would be in jeopardy.
Records show Champagnie, after insisting their pursuit had ended, radioed in several updates about the Hyundai's progress. The final one: 'The car just rolled over.'
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The Winslow family, police watchdog groups, and advocates who are tracking the internal affairs investigation into the officers have called for more answers about what happened and whether those involved should be held accountable.
'I want justice. I want whoever is accountable to go down for it,' said Troy's father, Tony Lee Winslow Sr., 40.
A memorial shrine for Troy Winslow covers a wall in his family's home with funeral programs, family photos, flowers, candles, and a basketball. The 15-year-old Madison Park freshman was among three teenagers who died in a January 2024 high-speed crash that occurred after Boston police officers continued following their vehicle despite orders from a supervisor to terminate pursuit.
Erin Clark/Globe Staff
The Police Department's ongoing refusal to follow the court order to turn over internal affairs documents about its investigation into Champagnie raises further questions about the case, according to advocates for police accountability. That court order is connected to an unrelated criminal case involving a traffic stop by Champagnie.
'Part of police accountability is based in transparency,' said Sophia Hall of the Boston-based legal advocacy organization Lawyers for Civil Rights. 'We need to stop shrouding the activities of law enforcement.'
A lawyer representing Champagnie and Farley in the internal affairs investigation declined to comment on both men's behalf, saying the probe continues and both have been called back for further interviews.
The car in which three out of the four occupants, all teenagers, died after accelerating at speeds that reached 106 miles per hour and then crashing as police continued to follow them on Morrissey Boulevard.
Massachusetts State Police
The new material from the district attorney's investigation, including written reports, photos, cruiser camera footage,
audio from body-worn cameras of Champagnie and Farley, and
audio interviews with the police officers and the surviving victim, detail the fast final minutes before the crash.
Champagnie and Farley
were conducting a separate traffic stop near the intersection of Gallivan Boulevard and Morton Street by the Dorchester-Mattapan line when a passing car caught Champagnie's eye. It appeared the multiple young people inside were wearing masks or balaclavas, and the make and model — a gray Hyundai Accent — matched a car different officers had pursued earlier that night.
With a quick motion, Champagnie caught Farley's attention, and they returned to their unmarked Ford Explorer to follow. Champagnie
ran the license plate number into a police database, and it returned as canceled and belonging to an older man. They suspected the car was stolen.
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Farley, who served seven years in the Army before joining the Police Department full time in 2022, activated his lights to signal to the car to pull over. Lemus-Davila, the driver, seemed to comply, immediately slowing down and stopping on the side of Gallivan. But after the two officers left their cruiser and began to approach on foot, the Accent sped off, swerving through traffic, both officers later told investigators.
Farley and Champagnie jumped back into the Explorer and pursued the Accent, lights and siren on. Champagnie began radioing in updates, telling the dispatcher and his superiors what had happened. That's when a superior officer told him they should stop.
The officers turned off the lights and siren, but continued to follow the car. Then, the car began to weave hard back and forth, both officers said, as though the driver was cutting the wheel.
'They seem to appear that they wanted to lose control of the vehicle at times, so I re-engage my lights, and I continue to follow the vehicle,' Farley told investigators.
Champagnie radioed in updates, telling the dispatcher what was happening.
A separate officer in the area, hearing Champagnie's descriptions over the radio, told dispatch she was going to try to catch up to them on Morrissey Boulevard. Video shows a second cruiser, lights on, traveling a few seconds behind Farley and Champagnie as all three cars drive quickly down Morrissey in the moments before the crash.
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While on Morrissey Boulevard near a 7-11 store, a supervisor questioned Champagnie.
'OK, just to confirm, we have nobody pursuing that motor vehicle? Is that correct?' the sergeant asked.
'Correct, no pursuing,'' Champagnie replied, according to audio recordings of Champagnie's body worn camera obtained by the Globe. The sound of the cruiser's engine revving can be heard on the recording. Police have not said how fast they were going at that point.
Dash cam footage showing the response after a high-speed chase ended with three out of the four occupants, all teenagers, dead or dying.
Massachusetts State Police
Then, both officers would later tell investigators, the driver of the Hyundai suddenly sped off again, heading north on Morrissey Boulevard under the Expressway and out of sight toward South Boston. The police followed, lights still on, they said, until they came upon the Accent as it was rolling over.
Boston and State Police found three teenagers with horrific injuries from being ejected out of the spinning car, according to police reports and video of the scene.
The survivor was pulled from the wreckage by a State Police trooper, who carried him to the side of the road where he sat until Boston EMS crews arrived to treat him, according to police videos of the scene.
Farley, who was trained in how to use first aid during combat while serving in the Army, rushed to his cruiser, grabbed medical supplies, and tried to help the victim who lay closest to the wrecked car. The victim was later identified as Winslow, who was pronounced at the scene, records show.
A State Police investigation found the car reached 106 miles per hour in the seconds before the crash. The report found the crash was caused by the driver of the Hyundai, 'who was speeding and unable to maintain control of the vehicle.'
After the crash, State Police said they found an unloaded Glock 23 pistol with the serial number of BCST062 near the driver's side door. A Jamaica Plain woman told Boston police in the hours after the crash
that her late father's Hyundai had been stolen after she had left the keys in the ignition. It was not known if police conducted a gun trace on the weapon.
The only interview with the
survivor that was provided by the district attorney's office was conducted less than two hours after the crash in a Boston Medical Center emergency room. The boy mumbled muddled answers through an 11-minute interview. He said he didn't know whose car it was. He said officers chased them earlier in the evening, but they escaped.
What happened in the second chase?
'I don't know,' he said. 'I just know we got in a crash.'
State Police, in a separate report, quoted the teen as saying, 'I told them to stop.'
Champagnie, Farley, and the third officer involved in the pursuit were taken to the hospital for examination.
Farley was prescribed Ativan, an anti-anxiety medicine, while Champagnie was examined at the hospital and released. The third officer, who told her superiors, 'I felt horrible,' was also examined and then released.
In October, a lawyer representing the Boston Police Department said in court during an unrelated gun case that an internal-affairs investigation into Champagnie's role in the crash was to be completed in the following month.
The city attorney, Jess Megee, noted, however, that the investigation would still have to be reviewed by the department's top commanders and that 'anyone along the approval process has the ability to send the case back to the investigator for further investigation.' That could prolong the release of the information, and the department has been criticized for the
The unrelated gun case Megee attended in court in October involved a 2023 traffic stop made by Champagnie. Zachary Cloud, an attorney who represents the defendant in that case, requested the hearing to ask whether to hold Boston police in contempt of court for ignoring the previous court order to turn over its internal affairs records about Champagnie. If the judge finds in his favor, the case could be dismissed.
Cloud provided the Globe a document showing Boston police are investigating whether Champagnie violated department pursuit policy. The document also details two previous complaints against Champagnie during the year he was on the force before the crash: a sustained finding that he accidentally fired a gun in June 2023, damaging property, and that he failed to properly report it; and an open complaint that he illegally searched someone in September 2023 during a traffic stop.
'The police should not be above the law,' Cloud
said.
Jessica Adams held a memorial necklace featuring her son Troy Winslow's image alongside a pendant with the letter "T" that her mother-in-law gave to Troy the Christmas before he died.
Erin Clark/Globe Staff
Adams, the mother of Winslow, recalled the last night with her son, the second oldest of her five sons. He had left the family home around dinnertime on Jan. 3, enroute to one of several jobs he held, his family said. He usually used a Bluebike to get around. He spoke with his mother several hours later and told her he was on his way home.
His parents said they do not know why
Troy got into the car, and what happened afterwards.
'We've been asking the same questions — what led up to this? How long was he in the car?' Adams said.
Troy's parents do not believe that the responsibility for their son's death lies with Lemus-Davila or the other teens.
'These are children,'' said Adams. 'These were babies."
'They didn't know better,'' said Tony Winslow.
Troy's casket was closed for the funeral, and the only item ever returned to the Winslows was a necklace. His mother now wears it herself, a small way to stay in contact with the child she called 'my bugaboo.'
The Winslows have retained an attorney, Jessica R. Sofio, concerned that a full accounting of how the teen lost his life will never occur if they don't demand answers on their own.
'I need to know the truth, and I need to know what happened,' Adams said. 'I need to know who is responsible.'
John R. Ellement can be reached at