LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — The family of Daniel Barajas has filed a civil complaint against several Saline County Sheriff's Office deputies, Arkansas State Police, and more alleging he was racially profiled and his rights were violated and therefore caused his death.
In an interview with The Guardian, the family said they were not in denial and said that the "story doesn't make sense."
Barajas was killed on the morning of Jan. 15, 2022, after he was hit by a driver along I-30 in Saline County and then run over by a truck passing by. His death came a short time after an interaction with deputies where he was found sleeping inside his vehicle.
In that initial incident, two Saline Co. deputies found Barajas' vehicle allegedly parked "in the middle" of an I-30 exit ramp around 4:35 a.m. He was working as a traveling welder and was driving to visit his family in Texas when he pulled over to sleep, according to the lawsuit.
The two deputies then woke up Barajas and ordered him out of his vehicle. Deputies suspected him of being a drug trafficker, according to the lawsuit. Soon after backup arrived along with a K9 and deputies noted Barajas' eyes were "very red" and that he seemed to be incoherent.
He would tell an official at the scene about issues with his contact lenses. The lawsuit explains that Barajas was prescribed contact lenses to deal with some eye conditions.
Another deputy who responded to the scene noted the car was "partially parked in the roadway" rather than in the middle of the ramp. A search of his vehicle revealed no drugs, weapons, or contraband.
His ID was checked by the deputies and Barajas couldn't explain what he was doing or where he was going. At one point, Barajas was walking toward one of the patrol cars when he took a sharp turn toward I-30 and that's when deputies allegedly took his arm and had him sit near another vehicle.
One deputy referred to this as an alleged "suicide attempt" while another deputy made no mention of the incident in a report.
Paramedics arrived at the scene before 5:15 a.m. and determined he was "perfectly alert" and while his eyes were red they were normal. He was given a blanket by the EMTs before they left and he mentioned hallucinating while drinking alcohol, but had not drank any alcohol recently nor was he intoxicated.
After the paramedics left, deputies said that Barajas told them he was possibly acting strange because of his lack of sleep and "feels very strange when being woke up suddenly."
The lawsuit alleges deputies refused to let him leave and used "excessive force" which ended up leaving him injured and confused. Lawyers contend that the excessive force is what ultimately led to his death.
After Barajas was hit by the second vehicle, firefighters would end power washing the "potential crime scene and any evidence," the lawsuit said. Accident reconstruction was reportedly not performed at the scene.
An Arkansas State Police trooper also reportedly told the first driver who hit Barajas that he was a "homeless drug addict" and "suspected drug trafficker" despite no evidence to indicate either.
Michael Laux, a lawyer hired by the family, questioned in The Guardian article why law enforcement would leave him on the side of the road if he was having a mental health crisis or was suicidal, as one deputy claimed.
We have reached out to Arkansas State Police who informed us that they do not comment on pending litigation, and are waiting to see if the Saline County Sheriff's Office will provide a comment on the lawsuit.
We will update this article with their statement if it is provided.