Pregnant woman was searching for safe place to pull over when police rammed and flipped her SUV, lawsuit says

An Arkansas woman says she had no safe place to pull over in July 2020 when a state trooper tried to stop her for speeding, so she turned on her hazard lights and slowed down. Moments later, the officer rammed her vehicle, causing it to flip over and injuring the woman, who was pregnant at the time, according to a May lawsuit.

Dashcam footage, obtained by anattorney representing Janice Harper, shows Harper appearing to slow down with her hazard lights on after trooper Rodney Dunn initiated a traffic stop. She continued driving for about two minutes, during which time a concrete barrier was visible along the road's shoulder and no exits are seen.

Two minutes and seven seconds after the police car first turned on its lights, the cruiser bumped the left rear edge of Harper's vehicle in a Pursuit Intervention Technique (PIT) maneuver, which is often used in police chases, causing her vehicle to swerve across Highway 67/167, hit a barrier and flip upside down.

The video received viral attention in early June and an edited clip has been viewed more than 6 million times on social media.

Leave a Comment