Police accused of flipping pregnant woman’s car because she didn’t stop quickly enough
Nicole Harper says she was looking for safe place to stop when officer spun her car
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Your support makes all the difference.Police in Arkansas have been accused of flipping a pregnant woman’s car because she did not stop quickly enough for them.
Nicole Harper has now sued Arkansas State Police and accused them of negligently performing the PIT manouever, which overturned her vehicle on an interstate.
Shocking patrol car video of the incident last year has reemerged alongside the lawsuit, which Ms Harper says she hopes will change the department’s policy.
Arkansas State Police, like many forces across the US, use the Precision Immobilization Technique to intentionally hit and spin out cars during chases.
Ms Harper came into contact with Corporal Rodney Dunn in July 2020 when she was allegedly speeding on I-67 in the state.
The officer claims she fled, while Ms Harper says she was trying to find a safe place to stop when the officer performed the PIT move on her car just two minutes after putting on his flashing lights.
The manouever caused her car to hit the concrete media before flipping over and coming a stop.
“In my head I was going to lose the baby,” Ms Harper told FOX16.
“What if I had kids in the car? He wouldn’t have known. Did that matter? What was going through his head? What made him think this was okay?”
The lawsuit states that in the dashcam video Ms Harper was clearly indicating that she she was trying to stop before the incident.
“There’s a fundamental state law none of us should ever forget. All drivers are required under Arkansas law to safely pull-off the roadway and stop when a police officer activates the patrol vehicle emergency lights and siren. The language of the law is crystal clear,” said State Police Director Colonel Bill Bryant in a statement.
“Should a driver make the decision to ignore the law and flee from police, state troopers are trained to consider their options.
“Based on the totality of circumstances a state trooper could deploy spike strips to deflate the tires of the vehicle being pursued, execute a boxing technique to contain the pursuit slowing the driver to a stop, execute a PIT maneuver or terminate the pursuit.
“Most Arkansas State Police pursuits end without a PIT maneuver being utilised.”
The state’s Attorney Genera’s office, which is representing the police department, declined to comment “due to pending litigation” when contacted by The Independent.
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