ANCHORAGE — The Anchorage Police Department’s chief says an officer was speeding and ran a red light before his vehicle struck a taxi in Midtown early Aug. 1, a crash that killed the taxi’s driver and a front-seat passenger.
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Police say Officer Kaden Pohl was driving a Ford Explorer west on 36th Avenue with emergency lights and siren activated at about 1:10 a.m. Aug. 1 when his vehicle collided with a northbound taxi at the intersection with A Street. Anchorage Police Department Chief Sean Case said Friday that Pohl was driving faster than the posted speed limit and ran a red light before the crash.
“With red lights, APD’s policy has ‘been pretty longstanding that you have to slow down to a speed where you can safely navigate and clear the intersection,’” Case said, describing updated language that requires officers to be stopped or near stopped before driving through red lights.
The taxi’s driver, 68-year-old Cemal Sadiku, and a front-seat passenger, 45-year-old William Phillips, were pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Pohl and three other passengers in the taxi suffered non-life-threatening injuries and were hospitalized; Case said all have since been released.
Policy updates and training questions
Case said the department had recently revised pursuit and driving-related policies and trained officers on the changes the month prior to the collision. One of the changes includes clearer language that officers should “be stopped or near stopped” before proceeding through a red light. Case said he was unsure whether Pohl had received training on that specific update and declined to say whether Pohl had been trained on the revised guidance.
Under department policy, officers responding to calls are permitted to deviate from certain traffic laws, such as speed limits and traffic signals, but are required to take steps to do so safely. Case stressed that even when lights and siren are activated, officers must slow to a speed that allows them to safely clear intersections.
- Time and location: about 1:10 a.m., Aug. 1, 36th Avenue at A Street, Midtown Anchorage.
- Vehicles involved: APD Ford Explorer (officer Kaden Pohl) and a northbound taxi.
- Fatalities: taxi driver Cemal Sadiku, 68, and front-seat passenger William Phillips, 45.
- Injuries: Pohl and three taxi passengers hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries; all released.
Local impact and next steps
The crash has raised questions about how APD implements updated emergency response driving rules and how officers are trained on policy changes. The chief’s remarks indicate the department has recently tightened language around driving through traffic signals, but his acknowledgement of uncertainty over Pohl’s training leaves outstanding questions for investigators and city oversight officials.
For Midtown residents and drivers across Anchorage, the collision underscores the risks at intersections when emergency vehicles are responding to calls. City policy allows officers to use lights and sirens to expedite responses, but that authority is balanced with an obligation to proceed in a manner that protects the public. The loss of two people in the crash has intensified public scrutiny of how that balance is managed in real time.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Officer | Kaden Pohl |
| Date/time | About 1:10 a.m., Aug. 1 |
| Location | 36th Avenue and A Street, Midtown |
| Fatalities | Cemal Sadiku, 68; William Phillips, 45 |
At this stage, Chief Case’s comments are part of the department’s public accounting of the collision. Any formal findings about policy violations, discipline or changes in training procedures will depend on the outcome of the agency’s internal review and any outside investigations that may follow.
Anchorage residents seeking more information can expect updates from the police department and the city as those reviews proceed.
