Ticked-off pickup driver drags traffic cop up exit ramp

NASHVILLE — A man peeved about receiving a traffic ticket two months ago dragged an officer up an interstate ramp when he was stopped again, police said.

Danny Troupe, 54, of Pegram, Tenn., admitted to police afterward that he was angry about his May 13 citation when he stopped his pickup truck Monday in a busy lane of traffic on Interstate 440 to yell at motorcycle officer Danny Johnson, 52, who was conducting traffic enforcement, according to a Metro Nashville Police Department spokesman.

Johnson couldn't hear what Troupe was saying, so he walked over to lean in the passenger window, police said. When Troupe continued to berate Johnson, the officer asked him to pull out of traffic.

"I'm not pulling over," Johnson reportedly told the officer. Then the pickup-truck driver accelerated, dragging Johnson 12 feet up the exit ramp before stopping and causing Johnson to fall.

Johnson's shoulders were injured, but officials at Vanderbilt University Medical Center where he was transported said he is expected to make a full recovery.

Troupe, who was found guilty June 27 for running a red light in May, now is charged with reckless endangerment and evading arrest. He was out of jail on $15,000 bond less than two hours after he was booked.

Follow Ariana Sawyer on Twitter: @a_maia_sawyer

Related: