Car hits funeral procession for Orlando massacre victim

Two police officers were on motorcycles escorting the funeral procession south of Orlando when they were hit


Afp June 19, 2016
Air guns are displayed in a store in downtown Orlando on June 17, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. Following a week of sucessive tradgedies in this medium sized Florida city, residents and tourists alike are surrounded by a somber environment that has yet to come to terms with the violence. PHOTO: AFP

WASHINGTON DC: A Florida driver hit two police officers Saturday as she tried to cut through a funeral procession for a victim of the mass shooting in Orlando, police said.

The two Osceola County Sheriff's deputies were on motorcycles escorting the funeral procession south of Orlando when they were hit at 11:30 am (1530 GMT), Florida Highway Patrol spokeswoman Sergeant Kim Montes said.

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"We think it was impatience," she said. "It wasn't intentional.

"We see this happening with funeral processions and this was an especially long one," she added.

Both deputies are in the hospital in stable condition, according to Montes.

Police identified the driver as Ivonne Robles Morales, 44.

Morales "stated that she thought someone waived her out to cross the procession, and she entered the intersection," a police statement said.

Her car then struck a first police car head on, causing the front of a second police car to strike the left rear of Morales's vehicle.

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She was ticketed for failing to yield to a funeral procession and has been ordered to appear in court.

Police have not identified the police officers involved in the crash.

It was not immediately clear whose funeral procession was taking place during the accident.

Last week's massacre at a gay nightclub in Orlando was the deadliest mass shooting in US history. Funerals are taking place over the weekend.

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