JERSEY CITY, N.J. (AP) - A New Jersey man has been sentenced to five years in a high-speed chase that ended in a crash that severely burned another driver who was then allegedly kicked and dragged by officers.
Leo Pinkston, 49, expressed remorse as he was sentenced Friday on counts of eluding police and aggravated assault in the June 4 pursuit in Jersey City, NJ.com reported .
“I sincerely apologize for my action and what happened to an innocent person,” he said. “I would like my condolences to go out to his family.”
After a chase of almost 6 miles, Pinkston crashed into a car being driven by a young father on his way home from work. A video showed Miguel Feliz-Rodriguez exiting his car with his clothes on fire before being kicked by the officers. A police union official has said the officers tried to help him. Four officers face charges in the pursuit.
Pinkston was shot in the leg, and his lawyer said in court Friday that the crash wouldn’t have occurred if police hadn’t fired and struck his client, which he said caused the “bullet-riddled” vehicle to go out of control.
Hudson County Superior Court Judge Mark Nelson rejected that argument, although he said he was “well aware that there are entities that may be partly responsible.” Nelson said the entire episode wouldn’t have occurred if Pinkston had simply stopped when police first tried to pull him over some six miles away from where the chase ended.
A prosecutor read a statement from Feliz-Rodriguez saying he has scars from burns on his hands, face, back, stomach and legs which will require further surgery.
“I will never be physically or mentally the same again,” he said, adding that he has nightmares, flashbacks and continuing pain. “I don’t like looking at myself in the mirror.”
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Information from: NJ.com, http://www.nj.com
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