A former police officer in Lake Worth, Texas, has been hit with a civil lawsuit after allegedly “intentionally” mowing down a suspect during a pursuit in November 2020. Jonathan Granado is accused of leaving Dustin Bates with a fractured spine, ribs, and leg after driving “directly into him.” Granado had tried to pull Bates over for a traffic stop, but Bates, who was on a motorcycle, fled and wound up running away on foot on grassy ground near a highway exit ramp, the Lake Worth Police Department said. At a news conference Monday, Police Chief J.T. Manoushagian condemned the “poor judgment” of Granado and said his “heart sank” when he watched body-cam footage of the incident, but he maintained that Granado had driven into Bates after trying to brake and sliding on wet grass. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Fort Worth, alleges that Granado had “centered” Bates in front of the SUV before he “intentionally ran over Mr. Bates with his department-issued SUV as Mr. Bates fled on foot.” Both the Lake Worth police and Grand Prairie Police Department conducted investigations into the incident, according to Manoushagian, and Granado was hit with a two-week suspension for violating conduct policies. A grand jury declined to pursue criminal charges against him, and he resigned in December 2021 of his own accord.

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