Dallas councilman accused of hitting scooter rider, driving away

Dallas police are investigating whether a city councilman hit a scooter rider and then drove off.

Police say the scooter rider suffered only minor injuries when he was hit by a car on Wednesday. But the charge for the driver could be serious for leaving the scene of the accident.

Councilman Kevin Felder was at a council meeting all day Wednesday. While in that meeting, police seized his Ford Fusion parked outside the meeting for evidence and towed it away.

According to the witness who called DPD, the impact happened near the 2500 block of Malcolm X Boulevard around 11:30 a.m. The victim, who is an 18-year-old man, was on a motorized scooter. He says he was traveling in one of the vehicle lanes when he noticed a car coming up behind him. He tried to get over and that when he says the driver hit him with the front passenger side of his Ford Fusion. The two men exchanged words, and then Felder allegedly left the scene.

“I saw the car stopped. I saw a scooter on the street, and I saw a young boy. And it was very clear that that was an accident,” said witness Valerie Ballard. “I could see that the boy was upset, and I heard him yelling. What he was saying to the councilman was to get out of the car. And I expected him to get out of the vehicle to make sure the boy was ok, and he did not. He just drove off.”

A few hours after the crash was reported to Dallas PD, the councilman could be seen pacing back and forth inside the off-site Dallas city council meeting.

At one point, City Manager T.C. Broadnax spoke to Felder who then walked over and talked to Police Chief Renee Hall, who did not look pleased. She walked out of the meeting and then walked back in from the parking lot.

A short time later, a security guard escorted Felder out of the meeting. Felder's car was then towed away from the meeting.  Visible damage could be seen to the front passenger side of his car, including a dent and scuff mark.

“It’s too early to tell at this point in the investigation. We don't want to rush to any judgment. We’ll conduct this investigation as we normally do,” said Dallas Police Deputy Chief Thomas Castro. “If it turns out we need to affect an arrest, we are willing to do so.”

At this point, Felder is not under arrest. Castro says investigators still need to interview him. The car was towed as part of the investigation.

Investigators know Felder was at the meeting Wednesday all afternoon and evening. They say it is not out of the ordinary that they have not yet taken a statement from him and that he was not getting special treatment.

Its possible Felder could face a felony charge of failure to stop and render aid.

The witness says the 18-year-old victim suffered some scratches to his arm but appeared to be ok. She says she recognized Felder because her business is in his district and she knows who he is.