A Gainesville man was charged Saturday afternoon after a Gainesville police officer attempted to stop him from driving recklessly by throwing her flashlight at his vehicle.
GPD officers were called to an unauthorized block party early Saturday morning near 1300 SE 17th Terrace to disperse the crowd. While they directed traffic on foot, one officer noticed a car speeding toward her, according to a police report. The officer estimated the car was traveling at 60 MPH around pedestrians and marked patrol cars.
The officer yelled at the driver, who was later identified as 22-year-old Eric Rim, to stop the vehicle and used her strobe function on her flashlight to get his attention. As the car passed, she swung the flashlight toward it, hitting the rear driver’s side door before falling to the ground, according to the report.
Rim stopped his car about 100 yards away and began shouting out his window at the officer. He then fled the scene.
Rim drove to his house about a block away. Rim arrived appearing intoxicated, according to a police report, and upset about the damage the flashlight did to his car
He retrieved a black handgun and said he was going to shoot the officer who threw the flashlight. When a woman who was at Rim’s house tried to calm him down, Rim grabbed her by the neck and began choking her. He told the woman he would shoot her and dispose of her body.
Later Saturday night, the woman called the police to report the incident. Approximately 20 minutes later, Rim called the police to report the flashlight incident from earlier that day. Rim went to the police station and was taken into custody.
Rim was charged with eluding a police officer and domestic aggravated assault, both felonies, in addition to simple domestic battery and reckless driving, both misdemeanors.
He remains in jail in lieu of a $95,000 bond. It is unclear whether he has an attorney.
Rim
