Officer charged in Henderson hit-and-run back to work
A former Henderson police union president returned to work this week despite facing an ongoing hit-and-run court case.
On Oct. 13, Gary Hargis is suspected of striking a motorcyclist while driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee near the intersection of Greenway Road and Van Wagenen Street.
Police said an SUV registered to Hargis’ wife crossed into the motorcycle’s lane while making a right turn, striking the motorcycle head on. Kevin Dammers, the 18-year-old motorcyclist, said he suffered an ankle injury in the crash.
A witness to the crash followed the vehicle and confronted the man driving. The man said, “No, your friend hit me,” according to police.
On Monday, Hargis was taken off administrative leave and returned to work in an administrative capacity, according to city spokeswoman Madeleine Skains.
Hargis started working for the city in August 2000. The city confirmed on Oct. 20 that Hargis had his police powers suspended pending the outcome of the investigation.
Hargis lost his re-election bid as president of the union to Shawn Thibeault in November.
“The investigation is still pending, and no further comment can be provided at this time,” Skains said in an email Tuesday.
Henderson police body camera footage captured an officer knocking on Hargis’ door with no answer hours after the crash. Later that morning, police spoke to Hargis, who said he went to bed at 10:30 p.m. despite video surveillance footage from the Henderson Police Officers’Association office showing that he exited the office at 11:56 p.m., about 15 minutes before the crash.
In December, Hargis was charged with misdemeanor counts of duty to stop at the scene of an accident, failure to maintain a lane of travel and failure to give information to a party involved in a crash.
The Henderson city attorney’s office could not be reached for comment.
His attorney pleaded not guilty on Hargis’ behalf in January.
The misdemeanor charges came after the Clark County district attorney’s office declined to file a felony hit-and-run charge against Hargis. Assistant District Attorney Christopher Lalli said in November that prosecutors could not find sufficient evidence to prove Dammers suffered bodily injury.
A jury trial is scheduled for May 22. Two prior trial dates were pushed back for the two sides to negotiate, Henderson Municipal Court records show.
Hargis’ attorneys could not be reached for comment.
Contact David Wilson at dwilson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @davidwilson_RJ on Twitter. Review-Journal staff writer Briana Erickson contributed to this report.
