Minor Traffic Stop Turns Violent

A traffic stop due to a broken taillight turned bloody according to a video revealed by Metro Police’s body camera. The incident left an officer wounded and the perpetrator dead.

According to the video, James Todora, a 54-year old was stopped by Officer Carlos Luna on Friday morning at around 9:40 am on the 5600 block of West Sahara Avenue due to the broken taillight of his gold Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Todora was not new to trouble with the police; recently due to a dispute with his wife, he was detained, as he had threatened to kill her.

As Todora got out of his SUV, he shouted to Officer Luna to shoot him. Luna then tried to calm the situation down by asking Todora to get back into the car and then walked up to him in order to explain why he had stopped him. Officer Brian Kroening, who was performing his duty nearby entered the scene too, when he realized that Todora was getting agitated.

Todora, who was disturbed due to troubles with his wife started complaining about his problems and threatened to kill himself with a rifle in his vehicle. Officer Luna, who was still trying to calm him down, was taken by surprise as Todora suddenly pulled out a Ruger 9mm handgun and pointed it on his head. The situation got further out of hand, as the gun made a clicking sound but did not fire. Luna immediately ran to the back of the Jeep to protect himself.

Evan Hogue, another officer who was nearby saw the trouble and got out of his car and stepped in to help. As soon as he arrived, Todora fired shots from inside the car and struck Officer Hogue.

Instinctively, Office Kroening fired shots at Todora and he was pronounced dead. Officer Hogue was rushed to the University Medical Center. Luckily, the bullet had grazed his neck and he was treated and released the very same day.

Todora was frequently having disputes with his wife, according to Metro Police Undersheriff Kevin McMahill, at a news conference. Todora had asked his wife to borrow her truck, as he was planning to shift to Pahrump. When his wife arrived with the truck to meet him, he put a gun on the passenger door panel. As soon as his wife saw the gun, she drove away without him. Later, an angry Todora arrived at the home to retrieve the gun. The wife panicked and dialed 911 but Todora had already left by the time the police arrived. After a few other such incidents, a temporary protective order was issued against him.

At the time when Officer Luna stopped Todora for the broken taillight, he was unaware of the husband-wife dispute.