University of Delaware student killed, several hurt when driver flees from police, hits people near campus

A University of Delaware graduate student was killed and several other people were injured when a U-Haul truck driver fled from police and collided with people near campus, officials said.

“This is a gut-wrenching, senseless and intolerable crime … which was completely and totally avoidable,” Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings said at a news conference Wednesday.

On Tuesday afternoon, officers in a shopping center parking lot spotted an empty U-Haul truck that had been reported Monday “as an unauthorized use vehicle” after it was rented but not returned when due last month, Newark police said.

About 45 minutes later, Gordon Turner, 22, and a passenger returned to the truck. As officers moved in to arrest them, Turner drove over a curb, hit a marked police car and sped away onto the street, according to police.

“Newark Police officers did not initiate a pursuit,” police said in a statement. “All officers remained within the shopping center and did not follow Turner.”

Meanwhile, Turner allegedly sped down Main Street, lost control of the truck and hit two pedestrians, police said.

His truck then allegedly hit several parked cars which had five people inside, police said, and those collisions caused a chain reaction where a parked car was pushed into another pedestrian.

The U-Haul then came to rest in front of a post office, police said.

One of the pedestrians hit — a 24-year-old University of Delaware graduate student — died at the scene, according to police.

The second pedestrian, also a 24-year-old University of Delaware graduate student, suffered serious injuries and is in the hospital in stable condition on Wednesday, police said.

Another three victims were taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries and several people were treated at the scene for minor injuries, police said.

Officers responded to the disabled U-Haul and detained Turner and the passenger, police said.

“A student was murdered during an attempt by the defendant to evade a simple traffic stop by law enforcement. These students were not in the wrong place at the wrong time — they were nine young people out on a beautiful spring day,” Jennings said at the news conference. “Because of one person’s cruel and selfish decision, because of the defendant’s choice not to obey police officers, nine of those young people were injured. One of those young people will never go home.”

Charges against Turner include: second-degree murder — death caused during commission of a felony; second-degree murder — reckless conduct showing indifference to human life; and first-degree assault — conduct creating risk of death or serious injury, police said.

“There will undoubtably be other charges,” Jennings said.

Turner is also a fugitive wanted in Georgia, Pennsylvania and Maryland, police said.

Turner’s passenger has not been charged, police said.

“This is a terrible tragedy,” university President Dennis Assanis and Vice President for Student Life José-Luis Riera said in a letter to the university. “We speak for the entire University in offering our condolences to the families, friends and classmates of the victims, and keep the other members of our community in our thoughts who may have witnessed the crash and its aftermath.”

“The safety of our entire community remains our top priority, and we will continue to work with our partners in city and state government to address safety concerns around and on the UD campus,” they added.