Ex-Wichita cop sped more than 90 mph before crash that injured 4, affidavit says
A former Wichita police officer charged with injuring four women in an April crash sped down Hillside at more than 90 miles an hour while rushing to an emergency call — and may have been driving without his audible siren on to alert other motorists of his approach — according to a probable cause affidavit released Friday.
A woman who saw Jayce D. Bennett’s patrol car speeding by Wesley Medical Center on April 18 told authorities she remembered seeing his red and blue lights activated. But she said repeatedly that there was no sound coming from the patrol car warning others on the road, the affidavit says.
Had she not been paying close attention to traffic as she left the hospital that night, she might have been the one hit, she told authorities.
Bennett continued to race south for another half mile, where he blew through a red traffic light and slammed into a Hyundai Sonata at First and Hillside.
The electronic event data recorder from Bennett’s 2020 Ford Explorer Police Utility Vehicle recorded his speed at 90.35 mph when he began braking 1.6 seconds before the collision, the affidavit says. At the time of impact, he was still traveling at 61.08 mph. The speed limit on that stretch of Hillside is 35 mph.
The Hyundai was traveling east on First Street at 10 mph and had just entered the intersection after the traffic light turned green, the affidavit says.
Investigators couldn’t confirm whether Bennett had ever turned his siren on, according to the affidavit.
But it does say that the way he drove that night didn’t give the Hyundai driver any reasonable opportunity to yield.
Bennett’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.
“Bennett’s emergency response driving and the speed he was operating the Ford exceeded even highway speed limits,” the affidavit says. “The time interval and expectation that (the woman) operating the Hyundai would be able to perceive, react, and properly yield to the Ford entering the intersection without a collision is highly improbable.”
The affidavit also says that a fence, parked cars and a traffic signal cabinet along the roads “greatly increased Bennett’s obligation to safely enter the intersection” against the red light because they reduced the line of sight for drivers.
The woman driving the Hyundai told investigators she didn’t see any hazards or emergency vehicles when she entered the intersection and wasn’t aware of Bennett’s patrol car “until immediately before impact.”
After crashing into the Hyundai, Bennett’s patrol car struck a raised median, a traffic warning sign and a post before it stopped on a sidewalk, tangled between a guy wire and a wooden utility pole, according to the affidavit.
The force of the impact caused the Hyundai to spin around in the intersection and strike a curb and fire hydrant.
The women in the Hyundai suffered serious injuries, including neck and hip pain, bumps, cuts and broken bones that required surgery to fix, the affidavit says.
Bennett suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was released from a hospital emergency department within hours. He was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the collision, according to the affidavit.
Authorities have said Bennett was responding to an “officer in trouble” call near Douglas and Grove when the crash happened around 10:08 p.m. When investigators interviewed him several days after the collision, Bennett recalled leaving his prior call but “did not remember anything after that or remember where he was going” when he hit the Hyundai, the affidavit says.
Bennett had been working for the Wichita Police Department for a little more than a year, since December 2024, at the time, a police official said previously. His employment ended on June 1, the department has said.
He is charged with four counts of aggravated battery. His next appearance in court is scheduled for July 20.
