(The following story by Jay Parsons appeared on The Dallas Morning News website on September 12.)
DALLAS — A hazardous-materials expert responding to the massive gas explosions near downtown Dallas in July faces a deadly conduct charge over a police pursuit that ended with a near-fatal crash involving a Flower Mound motorcycle officer.
Attorney Bob Baskett criticized the charge, saying his client, Alan Lee Henry, is a licensed investigator with Union Pacific Railroad Co. who was just doing his job on July 25 as he headed to check on hazardous materials stored near the site of the explosions.
Records released this week show that Special Agent Henry was weaving through traffic with his lights flashing when a Flower Mound squad car and a motorcycle officer attempted to pull him over. During the pursuit, motorcycle Officer Kevin Schmidt collided with another vehicle that had turned in front of him.
Agent Henry was charged with misdemeanor deadly conduct for reckless driving and failure to stop, according to the accident report. If convicted, he could face up to a year in prison and a $4,000 fine.
Mr. Baskett said Agent Henry was not pursued and did not know about the accident until traffic investigators called him later that day.
“It was an unfortunate accident, but my client wasn’t driving recklessly or disobeying any laws,” Mr. Baskett said.
Flower Mound police would not comment on any details of the incident, Lt. Wendell Mitchell said. The state Department of Public Safety led the investigation. Officials there pointed to the accident report and declined to comment further.
The case is now in the hands of the Denton County district attorney’s office, which did not return messages Wednesday. Prosecutors there will decide whether to prosecute Agent Henry. He has not been arrested.
Former Dallas County assistant district attorney Toby Shook said prosecutors would have a tough time proving criminal intent against a law enforcement officer.
“Both parties will be claiming to be acting in official law enforcement capacity,” Mr. Shook said. “If I’m a law enforcement officer responding to an emergency, I don’t have time to stop and tell these guys I’m a cop. And, secondly, did he really cause the officer farther behind to have a wreck?”
According to the accident report, Officer Schmidt was driving east on Cross Timbers Road, assisting another officer in a squad car in front of him. Agent Henry was driving a marked Ford pickup with its emergency lights activated.
At Garden Ridge Boulevard, Flower Mound’s eastern boundary, Officer Jason Toth stopped pursuing Agent Henry and turned around, according to the report.
Officer Schmidt was trailing behind the squad car. At the intersection with Timber Valley Drive, a Toyota Camry in the westbound lanes turned left in front of him. Officer Schmidt couldn’t stop in time and struck the side of the Camry. The impact threw him more than 70 feet.
It wasn’t clear how long the officers had pursued Agent Henry. Investigators declined to comment on the case. Mr. Baskett said that his client had begun to pull over when he saw Officer Toth’s flashing lights in his rearview mirror but that the officer turned around before he could stop.
“It wasn’t a pursuit,” said Mr. Baskett, adding that dashboard video shows the incident lasted only six or seven seconds.
Agent Henry kept heading toward Industrial Boulevard in Dallas, where gas explosions had injured two and rocketed flaming gas cylinders onto highway overpasses, shutting down Interstates 35E and 30 for hours.
On his way there, Agent Henry called police dispatch, Mr. Baskett said.
“He called Flower Mound just to say, ‘Hey, I saw your guy, and he pulled off, and I just want to let you know who I am and what I’m doing,’ ” Mr. Baskett said.
The dispatcher responded, “Oh, OK, thanks,” according to Mr. Baskett.
Mr. Baskett said Agent Henry has earned several honors in his career, including awards for saving lives.
The driver of the Camry, 66-year-old William Lovinggood of Flower Mound, was cited for failing to yield the right of way to oncoming traffic. There is no traffic light at the Timber Valley intersection.
Investigators later said they did not expect Officer Schmidt to survive the crash. But the 36-year-old officer has since improved and was released from hospital care Friday. The extent of his injuries was not released.
Union Pacific spokesman Joe Arbona confirmed that Agent Henry was responding to the explosions and said he remains in good standing with the company. Union Pacific placed the agent on paid leave to allow him time to handle the legal case, Mr. Arbona said.
Agent Henry started his career in 1992 with the Tarrant County sheriff’s office, according to records kept by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education.
Agent Henry, 40, also worked for the Hood County sheriff’s office and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission before joining Union Pacific in 2001. He was certified as a master peace officer in 2003.