We first introduced you to Michael Morris in February when he was facing a felony charge for eluding police after he said he was rushing his daughter to the emergency room. After our story aired, a 10 News viewer sent in a new exclusive video that shows the aftermath of the chase.
The video shows Morris being held at gunpoint by state trooper T.R. Derosha, leaving onlookers in shock. This is just moments after Morris pulled into the Lewis Gale parking lot after he says he was trying to get his 10-year-old daughter Marta to the ER.
“I had my window down and I was trying to get his attention, like ‘Look my daughter is in bad shape, we’re going to the emergency room. That’s the point at which, he pulled his gun out and pointed it right at me and basically pulled me out of the truck at gunpoint,” said Morris when we first spoke to him in February.
Morris and his wife were within two miles of the hospital for Marta’s doctor visit when her pneumonia symptoms took a turn for the worse. That’s when Morris says he rushed her to the emergency room.
[READ MORE: Franklin County father faces felony charge after rushing his daughter to the ER]
“I looked back and my wife was crying and my wife was having to hold her head up, she was going limp,” he recalled. “I turned my four-ways on, I pulled up to red lights, stopped and or slowed, looked both ways, went through.”
He explained the situation to dispatch, but the message was not immediately relayed to the trooper. Morris described the following moments after he pulled over, this new video giving us a glimpse of the tense moments.
“At one point I told the officer, I said ‘Look, you’re killing my baby,’ and his exact words were, ‘I’m going to kill you if you move again,” Morris said.
Morris was initially charged with eluding police, a Class 6 felony. In court, Trooper Derosha testified about his interaction with Morris that day.
“My traffic stop was with Mr. Morris. He’s worried about their well-being, I’m not a doctor, I see what I can see. I’m not going to hold them if they are sick,” Derosha told the judge.
During that video, which lasts about a minute and a half, Marta and her mom are still in the backseat. Derosha eventually allowed them to go inside the ER.
Marta was transported via ambulance to a Richmond hospital to be treated for her pneumonia symptoms. She has since made a full recovery.
The judge ruled the case would go before a grand jury.
However, the indictment was not presented for felony eluding. Instead, Morris was indicted on a reckless driving charge, a misdemeanor.
His trial date is set for December 7.
See our previous coverage below: