FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Attorneys and family members of a 13-year-old boy who died in December after crashing his dirt bike are once again calling for a Boynton Beach officer to be fired in the case and charged with a crime.
They held a news conference on Monday to highlight the officer’s disciplinary history involving deadly pursuits.
Stanley Davis III died after an attempted traffic stop by Officer Mark Sohn a day after Christmas.
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A Florida Highway Patrol investigation found in March that Sohn did not act improperly while pursuing Davis III and should not face any charges.
"It wasn't surprising to me," Stanley Davis Jr., Stanley's father said. "At the end of the day, they are police officers. They are out to protect each other."
The teen was going 85 mph on a dirt bike when he fled an attempted traffic stop.
In the past 20 years, there have been more than a dozen reprimands for Sohn.
His disciplinary history includes two unsatisfactory performances in a vehicle pursuit. He was involved in one high-speed pursuit that resulted in the death of 5-year-old Jayden Readon in 2016.
That case also involved an attempted traffic stop where the driver fled at 60 mph and struck and killed the child as he walked on the sidewalk.
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His mother, Marisella Readon, is still grieving six years later.
"It doesn't sink in. It's almost unreal that this is happening," Readon said. "Is this real life? It's a nightmare you are living in. I never woke up from that nightmare. I'm still living in it."
Readon's family and Davis' family said they don't understand why Sohn is still on the force.
"He feels like he is untouchable," Readon said.
Attorneys for the Davis family have asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the crash and the department itself. They are also asking for State Attorney Dave Aronberg to charge the officer with first-degree murder.
WPTV reached out to the Boynton Beach Police Department for comment. They said their own internal affairs investigation is still ongoing.
The state attorney has previously said it can’t take action unless a criminal case is forwarded to prosecutors. The Florida Highway Patrol found Sohn committed no crime.
