Police sued over man's odd death

By MAX B. BAKER

STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER

Vattana Pakdimounivong was killed in October on Interstate 20. He was being taken to jail after becoming combative with police officers investigating a minor traffic accident.

An internal police investigation in November ruled the man's death an accident, and a toxicology report by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office revealed that Pakdimounivong had methamphetamine in his blood.

Pakdimounivong's wife, two children and parents are accusing the Arlington police of negligence for failing to properly look out for Pakdimounivong while he was in their custody and for following too closely in the other two patrol cars, the lawsuit says.

"He may have been doing some things he shouldn't have been doing, but I've got a widow and a couple kids and his parents who want to know what happened to Vattana," said Mike Freden, the family's attorney. "He should have ended up in jail and not the morgue."

Freden filed the lawsuit in Tarrant County civil court Friday.

Arlington Assistant City Attorney Frank Waite described Pakdimounivong's death as "an unfortunate accident."

"But we don't think the city is liable under these circumstances," he said.

Pakdimounivong had been involved in a minor accident on the I-20 service road near West Green Oaks Boulevard late at night, a police report stated. Officers suspected that he was intoxicated, but he became combative when police tried to conduct field sobriety tests.

Officers arrested Pakdimounivong on suspicion of obstructing government operation, evading arrest and resisting arrest, according to the police.

After being handcuffed and put into a patrol car, Pakdimounivong kicked out the back window. He was put into leg restraints and moved to another patrol car.

On the way to the Arlington Jail, Pakdimounivong kicked out the window of the second patrol car and leaped onto I-20, where he was struck by the patrol cars.

The department's internal investigation did not discuss how Pakdimounivong escaped from his handcuffs and leg restraints and jumped from the patrol car.