Statham, GA – In a monumental twist of irony, a police officer’s dashcam – which caught another driver running over his legs – has led to the officer being exposed for victimizing several people with false DUI arrests.
As the video shows, when Officer Marc Lofton tried to arrest Jessica Fox after pulling her over, Fox fled the scene and Lofton attempted to cling to her driver side, resulting in his falling to the ground and having both his legs run over.
Lofton was able to get up and run back to his car. He was treated for a concussion and Achilles tear afterward. Fox was charged with a number of crimes related to the incident, including “aggravated battery” and “aggravated assault” on a police officer.
However, in the days that followed the video release, dozens of people began submitting complaints about Officer Lofton, and they all point to a corrupt cop using his badge to ruthlessly prey on everyone he can.
From other dashcam footage and the formal complaints, it appears that Lofton looks for the smallest excuse to pull someone over, such as “an issue with their tag,” and proceeds to ask them if they are on any medications or drugs.
Lofton isn’t asking about certain types of drugs that actually cause impairment, but any drug at all – including prescription medications such as antidepressants, and, according to one resident, “diabetes medication, for blood pressure medication, there’s a woman who has cancer medications.”
When people admit to being on a drug, even a perfectly safe one, Lofton makes them undergo a field sobriety test. This gives him a pretext for an arrest. The motives for such predatory behavior could simply be a power display, meeting some sort of quota, seizing cash and property under civil asset forfeiture, or a combination of all three.
The video report produced by Ben Swann and CBS46 shows Statham resident being targeted in just this way.
“Kelly Pickens was pulled over by Statham Police Officer Marc Lofton because of an issue with her tag. But then she said Lofton asked her if she was taking drugs. Pickens responded saying she takes prescription medication authorized by her doctor.
“Just because a doctor prescribed them doesn’t mean you can drive on them,” Lofton said on dash-cam video.
“I take it every day, none of them say you can’t drive on them, none of them,” Pickens said on dash-cam video.
Officer Lofton then initiated a field sobriety test and later arrested Pickens and charged her with DUI.”
Pickens voiced her disbelief in an interview with local reporter Adam Murphy: “It was like being on the Dukes of Hazard…I mean does this stuff really still happen today? Is anybody paying attention?”
Mary Williams had similarly strong words after her encounter with Marc Lofton. She was arrested for DUI after telling Lofton she took antidepressants which did not impair her ability to drive, and being subjected to a field sobriety test.
“They are unlawful, from the get-go, everything about them,” Williams said. “It’s almost like we’re living in Hitler’s Germany and they’re the Gestapo who can pull you out of your car and take you to jail for doing absolutely nothing wrong.”
The Mayor and City Attorney have promised that Lofton’s actions will be on the agenda at the next city council meeting. Meanwhile, nearly 200 others have signed a petition “calling on the district attorney to complete a formal criminal investigation into the actions of Officer Lofton.”
It appears that Lofton’s appearance on national television getting run over brought him a different kind of fame than he would have hoped, as even people from Canada have signed the petition.