Wikimedia Commons / Brian Turner
The agreement would close out a federal lawsuit motorist Clarence Walker Crawford filed against the San Antonio bedroom community.
The agreement would close out a federal lawsuit motorist Clarence Walker Crawford filed against the San Antonio bedroom community, according to the daily.
He alleges that then-New Braunfels patrol officer Kaleb Meyer, who's white, violated his civil rights during a January 2020 traffic stop. According to the petition, Meyer said he pulled Crawford over because his license plate was dirty and its numbers obscured.
An attorney representing New Braunfels in the case told the Express-News the settlement includes no admission of guilt. Even so, Crawford's attorney Paul Vick, in comments to the paper, noted that city officials "did realize this was an egregious case."
The incident between Meyer and Crawford was captured on body-cam footage and made local headlines, prompting the officer's departure, according to a KSAT report. The city's police chief at the time also left in part due to the incident, according to the TV station.
In the footage, Meyer is seen ordering Crawford to get out of his car after he's pulled over, but the motorist explains that he can't unfasten his seatbelt while keeping his hands on the wheel as the officer demanded.
Once Crawford releases the seatbelt, Meyer grasps him and pulls him from the car. The clip shows the officer tase Crawford twice, then handcuff him. By the time Meyer employs the weapon a second time, the motorist is already prone in the parking lot.
Crawford was arrested on charges of having an unclean license plate, attempting to elude police and interfering with official duties, according to the Express-News.
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