A Georgia motorist has settled a claim against the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office in a 2017 incident in which Sheriff Eric Watson crossed the state line and jerked him out of his truck at gunpoint.
And Watson’s true target during that April 16, 2017, manhunt has filed a $5 million-plus lawsuit against the sheriff and one of his deputies, Eduardo Choate.
Bradley County Sheriff Eric Watson speaks at a press conference at the sheriff’s office on March 8, 2018.The Times Free Press reported in July 2017 about the Easter Sunday chase of Gary Lipps Jr., who had jumped bail on a bond written by Watson’s wife. It was during that hours-long pursuit that the Tennessee sheriff put a gun to the head of Timothy Tallent in Georgia.
Chattanooga attorney John Wolfe represents both men. He said Tuesday the terms and amount of the insurance settlement with Tallent are confidential.
Lipps’ lawsuit claims he was trying to surrender when the deputy loosed his K-9 on Watson’s orders. The sheriff’s department said the dog was set loose only after Lipps refused to come out of hiding, and that he punched and grabbed the animal until deputies subdued him.