ATLANTA — A local man is suing four Georgia state troopers for excessive force after he says they stomped his leg so hard that doctors had to amputate it.
Channel 2’s Craig Lucie met Ignacio Vargas and his attorney Wednesday afternoon. They told him Vargas deserved to be charged and go to jail for running from the troopers, but they say he didn’t deserve to lose his leg.
“I ran from the cops and their mindset would be that I would never run again from them,” said Vargas.
Vargas will tell you he made mistakes that June night in 2014 when he left a bar off Roswell Road.
Georgia State Patrol troopers pulled him over on suspicion of DUI and instead of complying, he fled.
“I immediately got scared. I went to the cop car and turned around and started running,” said Vargas.
Vargas says he was on the run for about 45 minutes when troopers spotted him near apartments on Roswell Road.
Troopers eventually caught up with him and he says they beat him up in a wooded area.
Someone, who lives in an apartment above, snapped a picture as they dragged him out of the woods.
“I was scared and made the wrong decision to run, but I still don’t deserve to lose my leg after something like that. I was in excruciating pain. I couldn’t bend my knee the officer kept telling me if I didn’t get into the cop car and bend my knee, he would make me get into the cop car,” said Vargas.
The Georgia State Patrol told Lucie they couldn’t comment on pending litigation, but they provided the original report.
“In their report, they allege you grabbed one (trooper) and threw one against the car?” asked Lucie.
“Yes, but I honestly can’t say yes or no to that,” answered Vargas.
In video from inside a trooper’s car, you can hear Vargas repeatedly say they injured his leg and that he needed to go to the hospital. His attorney Craig Jones wants the case to go to a jury trial to help cover his medical bills, which are more than $750,000.
“I think this is a guy who was drunk not playing with a full deck at the time. He was outnumbered four to one. They had him on the ground, they were Tasing him. It really wasn’t necessary to stomp the hell out of his legs. This kid deserved to go to jail, to lose his license, but he didn’t deserve to lose his leg,” said Jones with The Orlando Firm in Decatur.
They are also seeking pain and suffering damages. The lawsuit was just filed late Tuesday so it may take more than a year for this case to go to a trial.
“People make mistakes. They don’t need authority to ruin someone’s life because of the mistake they made,” said Vargas.
WSBTV
