CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Four people were arrested after a Sunday evening confrontation involving two vehicles in Cedar Rapids escalated into a chase, reports of gunfire and a crash, according to police. A 4-year-old girl was inside one of the vehicles during the incident.
Cedar Rapids police were called shortly after 7:30 p.m. following multiple 911 reports of two vehicles chasing each other and shots being fired.
Officers later found the two damaged vehicles in the 1500 block of 8th Street SW. One had left the roadway and struck a tree.
Court records provide additional details about what police say happened before the crash.
According to those records, 27-year-old Lamya Wright of Cedar Rapids got into a red SUV at Jim’s Foods with her 4-year-old child and drove away, leaving the child’s father at the store. Police said the father then got into another vehicle and followed the SUV.
Authorities allege both vehicles were driven recklessly during the ensuing chase, including traveling the wrong way on a one-way street.
Court records also indicate that a passenger in Wright’s vehicle pointed a gun toward the child’s father in the other SUV and may have fired the weapon during the confrontation.
The chase eventually ended near 8th Street SW. A witness told investigators that one driver struck the other vehicle, causing it to leave the roadway and hit a tree.
Police found the 4-year-old girl in one of the vehicles.
Following their investigation at the scene, officers arrested four people and took them to the Linn County Jail.
Jaylan Bentley, 26, of Cedar Rapids, was arrested on charges of child endangerment and reckless driving, along with allegations of driving without a valid license and a one-way traffic violation.
Lamya Wright, 27, of Cedar Rapids, was arrested on a child endangerment charge.
Lawrence Jefferson, 30, of Matteson, Illinois, was arrested on a charge of intimidation with a weapon and an outstanding warrant.
Lamonra O’Neal, 25, of Matteson, Illinois, was arrested on charges of child endangerment, obstructing prosecution and reckless driving, as well as failure to use child safety restraints and a one-way traffic violation.
Police said the investigation remains ongoing.
The arrests and charges are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
