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Father Of Man Paralyzed During Traffic Stop Asks DA To Drop Remaining Charges

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – At a small rally in the Hill District Friday Morning, Leon Ford Sr. reached out to District Attorney Stephen Zappala.

"We're here today to ask the DA to please drop the charges," said Ford, Sr. "It'll be two years next month. My son been going through a lot, I've been going through a lot – this while family."

It's famous dash cam video.

Leon Ford is pulled over by police and they're unsure of his identity. Ford refused to get out of the car, officers climbed inside and the car sped off.

Police fired five shots at Ford, leaving him paralyzed. Ford was found not guilty of the two most serious charges against him. The jury couldn't reach a verdict on the misdemeanors.

"We got found not guilty on the serious charges," Ford, Sr. said. "These other charges, they're just lingering around. They got him stressed to the max."

By making his public plea, Ford, Sr. may have violated a gag order that still stands in the case. He got angry when I asked him about it.

"I'm not talking about nothing else," Ford, Sr. said, "just the DA to drop the charges. Just asking for him to drop the charges."

When asked if Ford, Sr. was worried about violated a court order, he said, "I'm not worried about (expletive), put that on TV."

Zappala thinks Ford violated the court order, but says he's not concerned.

"He probably did, but I'm not going to do anything about it," he said.

"If Mr. Ford wants to talk about his son's condition and things like that, I'm OK with it," he added.

What's more troubling to Zappala is someone who flees from police. He says it causes deaths and injuries all over the country. As for retrying Ford on those misdemeanors, he hasn't made up his mind yet.

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