Dallas Police announced yesterday that Chief David Brown terminated 31-year-old officer Eric Watts, who had been assigned to the Northwest Patrol Division since 2005. Dallas County Grand Jury indicted Watts May 4 for providing false information in regard to an incident that happened back in April 2011.
Watts attempted to pull over a driver for a traffic violation in the Stemmons Corridor. The driver fled, and Watts chased him, which violates the department’s chase policy.
The vehicle, an orange Nissan, got stuck and traffic, and Watts got out of his squad car, pulled out his gun and commanded the driver to get out. The driver then sped off, running over Watts foot – at least that’s what Watts initially reported.
The dash cam video showed that the driver, in fact, did not run over Watts’ foot. According to the DPD, that little piece of incorrect information led to the suspect being charged with aggravated assault of a public servant, a felony that carries a prison term of 5 to 99 years.
