By Amira Van Leeuwen
BUDA — The Buda Police Department has issued an arrest warrant for “endangerment of a child” after a vehicle almost hit children playing at a local park last weekend. The suspect was notified of the warrant, instructing him to turn himself in within 24 hours.
After Luke Perry dropped off his son at Stoneridge Park in Buda early Saturday afternoon to play basketball with four or five of his friends, he went home. About half an hour later, his son frantically called him when a black Dually truck drove into the park, across the basketball court and to the fencing, seemingly chasing the boys.
“He was a little bit panicked,” Perry said. “He said, ‘somebody was in a giant monster truck facing us in the park, he drove over the basketball court trying to run us over.’”
Perry said it took about 20 minutes for 911 to respond.
When responding officer Casey Lopasky arrived at the scene, Perry described him as “very nonchalant.” After about five minutes of being on the scene, Lopasky told him he had to respond to another call and left.
According to an Oct. 31 Buda Police Department press release, an investigation found that the suspect did drive on the park grounds with youth present. As Buda police took statements, the officers were dispatched to a “high priority, in progress” call.
“We care about all of our citizens, particularly our youth. Driving onto park grounds could endanger the youth who were in the park, and that is unacceptable,” said Buda Police Chief Bo Kidd in the press release.
About an hour and 45 minutes later, and after a second 911 call by Perry, Lopasky and his supervisor pulled up to the scene of the incident and told Perry he was abusing police resources, making false claims and disturbing the peace.
A piece of video footage shows Lopasky and his supervisor, Sgt. Bill Kuykendall, explaining the incident.
“He could’ve killed your son, but he didn’t,” Lopasky said. “By the time I first got out here that incident was done. In your mind this is still happening, in reality, this ended like an hour ago.”
Perry also posted Ring doorbell footage on Facebook of two of the other boys that were trying to get away from the vehicle.
“One of the boys lives on the other side of fencing adjacent to the park, they ran into a sewer drain to get away while Jameson stayed in the pavilion and was confronted by the truck driver,” Perry said. “Buda police did not feel this warranted an arrest. These boys are terrified.”
But in the press release, Kidd clarified that when there is a delayed report of an offense that did not occur in the presence or view of officers, and there is no imminent danger to the individuals involved, it is typical to seek a warrant from a judge as opposed to making a warrantless arrest.
The officers filed their reports, and a probable cause affidavit was submitted to a judge.
