If the deputy believed the driver was intoxicated the fired deputy deserves what he can get and the accolades of the public for having the courage to report what he observed and what actually occurred despite being told not to.
Strong action should be taken against the Sheriff for telling him not to file the report as well.
Fired deputy files suit against Llano County
Sara Inés Calderón: Express-News
Llano County sheriff's deputy Jason Doss was on patrol in the small Hill Country town of Kingsland on a warm summer's night when he crossed paths with a silver truck that would challenge the course of his career.
The Chevrolet pickup sped through a stop sign as the driver attempted to make a right turn. It crashed into a speed limit sign in front of the Dairy Queen and rolled to the driver's side. Doss rushed to the truck as smoke escaped from the back and gas leaked to the ground. The four occupants inside screamed for help.
Doss pulled out the driver, who the deputy said smelled like beer.
Once out, the truck's driver told everyone he was Jourdanton Police Officer Robert Johnson, according to Doss' accident report.
Doss pulled out the driver, who the deputy said smelled like beer.
Once out, the truck's driver told everyone he was Jourdanton Police Officer Robert Johnson, according to Doss' accident report.
Moments later, Sheriff Nathan Garrett and Cpl. Bart Baccus and other deputies arrived on the scene.
That's when Doss' career took an unexpected turn. The crash is the centerpiece of a whistleblower's wrongful termination lawsuit Doss filed against Llano County and casts a shadow that stretches all the way to Jourdanton's small department.
Doss said Baccus told him to let Johnson — who acknowledged he had been drinking — off because he was a "fellow officer," per Garrett's orders, according to the suit.
Johnson and his three passengers, including two minors, smelled of alcohol and had slurred speech, bloodshot eyes and trouble standing, according to the suit. Johnson and the others were allowed to leave without giving official statements or being tested for drunkenness, according to the lawsuit.
"I always wanted to be in law enforcement," said Doss, who said he was fired 12 days after the crash and after informing the Texas Rangers and the Llano County District Attorney's office about the wreck and the possibility that alcohol was involved. "But you never know what's going to happen."
