Asthmatic woman sprints from court, down stairs, past security, hails cab before deputy catches up
Deyanira Salazar. Photo from Broward County Sheriff’s Office.
Updated: Ordered taken into custody after a Thursday morning hearing at a Florida courthouse, a woman slipped out of her handcuffs and sprinted out of the courtroom, down several flights of stairs, through the lobby and past security at the entrance of the Broward County Courthouse.
Deyanira Salazar, 35, even hailed a cab and jumped inside before a pursuing deputy caught up and blocked the taxi by standing in front of it, authorities said. At that point, according to witnesses, Salazar jumped out and ran over a skybridge to another street before a deputy caught up with her again, according to the Sun-Sentinel and WPLG. A news video linked to the WPLG article provides more details.
Because Salazar suffers from asthma, she was hospitalized after the incident.
Originally facing charges of grand theft and dealing in stolen merchandise, Salazar was arraigned Friday on new charges of escape, resisting arrest and petit theft—the latter because she still allegedly had the handcuffs when she ran from the courtroom.
Updated on Sept. 11 to include new information from subsequent Sun-Sentinel coverage.
