ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. (Sept. 8, 2023) – Kentucky State Police Post 4 troopers responded to a fatal collision in Hardin Co. early Friday morning.  On September 8, 2023, at approximately 3:08 A.M., KSP Post 4 received a call from the Elizabethtown Police Dept. requesting assistance with a collision at the intersection of Highland Avenue and Valley View Drive in Vine Grove.

The preliminary investigation revealed that an Elizabethtown Police Officer attempted to stop a 2010 Ford Flex for speeding on North Dixie near Baptist Health Hardin. The Ford failed to stop and fled at a high rate of speed. The pursuit continued on North Dixie before turning onto Joe Prather Parkway and ending at the intersection of Highland Ave and Valley View Drive in Vine Grove after the driver lost control.

The investigation revealed the driver was a 15-year-old male juvenile. A 20-year-old passenger, Jamari Whitfield of Radcliff, was pronounced deceased at the scene by the Hardin Co. Coroner’s Office. The juvenile was transported by Hardin Co. EMS to the University of Lousiville Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. He was later released and lodged in the Warren Co. Regional Juvenile Detention Center, where he was charged with murder.

KSP was assisted at the scene by the Elizabethtown Police Department, Hardin Co. EMS, and the Hardin Co. Coroner’s Office. The collision remains under investigation by reconstructionist Trooper Jesse Harp.

# # #