Video: Good Samaritan Steps in Big Time to Help Officers

Samaritan

He did it all for the Chick-fil-A. In Jacksonville, Texas a man was recorded on video running towards a truck in the restaurant’s parking lot when a Chicken sandwich connoisseur good Samaritan flung open his door with absolutely perfect comic timing and knocked the fleeing man clean off of his feet and into the arms of pursuing police officers. Local NBC Affiliate KETK news called it “An East Texas Citizen’s Assist”. Just when you thought you couldn’t possibly love Texas more…

What Is A ‘Citizen’s Assist’ of an Officer?

Fulgham Lawfirm explained on CriminalAttorneyFortWorth.com that Texas state law allows ordinary civilians to take a variety of actions to assist police. They wrote,

“Private citizens may assist the police in other ways. Citizens are permitted to make arrests in certain circumstances even without a warrant. A private citizen may make an arrest if an offense is committed in his “presence or within his view” if the crime is a felony or a breach of the peace. Breach of the peace has a distinct meaning. Texas courts have construed “breach of the peace” in this context to mean that the person’s conduct threatens continuing violence or may do harm to himself or another person. Thus, the courts interpret an exigency, or emergency, must exist at the time the arrest for a misdemeanor is made.”

This situation and the conservative methods employed by the good Samaritan fall very safely within the Texas legal guidelines for a Citizen’s Assist.

The Good Samaritan of Jacksonville’s Chik-Fil-A

Police were chasing the suspect struck by the well-timed door because he was driving a car that had been reported stolen. When approached the suspect fled on foot with police in pursuit. The chase led through a Chick-Fil-A parking lot where a customer on his lunch break was waiting and noticed the chase.

After decking the suspect with his door the customer ran out of his truck and assisted the officers pulling the officers dropped taser out of the suspect’s reach. Jacksonville PD quickly apprehended the suspect saying,

“The suspect was quickly apprehended after the “HANGRY” (but helpful) citizen reminded the suspect as to why you should never run from the police.”

Police and local news outlets did not identify the good samaritan.

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