A Conyers police officer spotted a vehicle parked in a fire lane last week while patrolling a shopping center.
After a tense confrontation — which also involved the suspect illegally parking in a handicap spot — the driver tried to run over the officer twice, injuring his leg, authorities said.
Tara Ferguson, 38, of Alpharetta, faces felony charges in addition to two illegal parking citations, Conyers police said.
The incident took place about 3 p.m. July 13 at the Conyers Crossroads shopping center, according to a police incident report obtained by AJC.com. The 57-year-old police officer said he spotted Ferguson’s 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander parked in the fire lane in front of a Home Goods store, so he went to investigate.
The officer asked the driver, later identified as Ferguson, if she was waiting for someone and told her she was illegally parked, the report said. She’s accused of closing the window in an attempt to ignore him.
She was told that she would be issued a citation if she didn’t move to a legal spot, prompting her to curse at the officer and move to a handicap spot, the report said. She did not have a permit to park there.
The officer approached her again, tapped on the window and said she needed to move or else she would be towed, the report said. Ferguson is accused of telling him to, “Stop touching my damn car,” before asking him, “Why don’t you give me a second to answer my (expletive) thing and then I’m leaving, jerk.”
Since tensions were rising, the officer called for a supervisor and walked behind the Mitsubishi to write down the tag number. That’s when Ferguson put the vehicle in reverse and hit the gas, the report said.
The cop’s right leg was struck by the rear bumper, and Ferguson backed into the officer a second time seconds later, further injuring his leg, the report said.
The officer said she then proceeded to taunt him by saying, “Stop hitting my car you (expletive) (expletive) head. Stop hitting my car.”
Ferguson tried to leave the scene, but the injured officer was able to get back into his patrol car, the report said. The officer, along with backup, were able to pull over Ferguson as she exited the shopping center.
Another officer took Ferguson into custody. She told the arresting officer that the incident was the other officer’s fault because “he shouldn’t have been standing behind her vehicle,” the report said.
In addition to the parking citations, Ferguson faces counts of aggravated assault on a police officer, hit-and-run and obstruction. She was booked into the Rockdale County jail.
Further information on her custody was not immediately available. AJC.com has reached out to the sheriff’s office for more detail.
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Credit: AJC
