Dashcam Shows Cop Intentionally Run Over Suspect
[su_center_b]
What a shock that a police officer would do such a thing! Not.
An Arizona police officer rammed into a suspect with his patrol car in February in order to stop the suspect’s alleged crime spree, according to two dashcam videos released by police on Tuesday.
In one of the videos released, a gunshot can be heard as the suspect, Mario Valencia, can be seen walking on a sidewalk in Marana, Ariz.
According to CBS, Marana police said that Valencia had stolen a gun from a Walmart after allegedly robbing a convenience store, setting fire to a church, and breaking into a home and a car.
Officer Michael Rapiejko decided to run into Valencia with his cruiser after police had already allegedly witnessed Valencia threaten to commit suicide and point a gun at his head, according to CBS.The first dashcam video released is from a police car following Valencia as he walked on a sidewalk. The officer in the car can be heard saying that a shot has been fired. Another police car can then be seen driving past and onto the sidewalk, running into Valencia and then a cement wall.
In the video, the officer in the car can be heard saying, “Jesus Christ! Man down,” as the second cruiser rammed into the suspect.
The second video shows dashcam footage from the car that ran over Valencia as the cruiser rams into the suspect.
Valencia spent two days in the hospital following the incident, and is now in jail, according to CBS. He faces 15 charges, including aggravated assault and armed robbery, according to CNN.
[su_facebook]
[su_google_center_ad]
mea_mark April 15th, 2015 at 12:13 pm
I really don’t understand how this can be considered acceptable behavior by an officer. This looks like something a homicidal maniac would do.
illinoisboy1977 April 15th, 2015 at 1:43 pm
The guy was a danger to himself and others. If the officers feared that he might shoot himself in the head, this was one option to take him down fast and hard, to keep him from committing suicide. He wasn’t seriously injured and no one else was hurt. The outcome was a good one.
Budda April 15th, 2015 at 2:27 pm
A good outcome but it could have been much worse
illinoisboy1977 April 15th, 2015 at 2:52 pm
I totally understand how this can give people some pause. But, he could have blown his own brains out. In this case, I think the officer made a good-faith effort to end the encounter as safely as possible, for all involved. Sometimes, you have to risk injuring someone in order to keep them alive.
illinoisboy1977 April 15th, 2015 at 1:41 pm
If the guy was armed and threatening suicide, I don’t have any problem with using a vehicle to bring him under control. Obviously his injuries were light, as he only spent two days in the hospital. The officer probably saved the suspect’s life, by getting the gun away from him.