The St. Louis circuit attorney’s office announced felony charges Monday against a 24-year-old St. Peters man after St. Louis Metropolitan Police officer David Lee died of injuries resulting from being hit by a car on I-70 over the weekend.
Ramon Chavez-Rodriguez is accused of hitting Lee with his vehicle around 8:30 a.m. Sunday while the officer was responding to a separate wreck on eastbound I-70 near Grand Boulevard. It was a rainy morning, and Lee was setting up warning flares and traffic cones around the scene when the accident happened.
Police on Monday said Chavez-Rodriguez was intoxicated and driving without a license at 18 mph over the 55 mph speed limit when he struck Lee, 44, with his car.
According to a court affidavit, Chavez-Rodriguez began to spin and lost control of his car. While in the spin, he hit Lee with the rear of his car, causing Lee to become pinned between two vehicles and thrown several feet. Police said Chavez-Rodriguez was traveling from Illinois to his home in St. Charles County when the incident occurred.
Rodriguez is not a U.S. citizen and had an immigration status hearing set for sometime in October, officials said Monday. St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore said that Rodriguez’s immigration status isn’t relevant to the charges, however, and that federal officials are handling immigration proceedings.
“It does have an impact on our assessment as to whether or not he’s an individual who is a flight risk or poses a danger to the community, and whether or not he’s someone who should receive a bond,” Gore said.
St. Louis Circuit Judge Catherine Dierker revoked Chavez-Rodriguez’s bond on Monday, according to court records. There’s typically a bond hearing right after someone is arrested in Missouri, and first appearances usually happen within 48 hours of an arrest.
He faces felony charges including DWI death of a law enforcement officer, exceeding the posted speed limit and operating a vehicle on a highway without a valid license.
Rodriguez was on supervised probation for a domestic battery conviction in 2022. St. Charles County prosecutors have filed a motion to revoke his probation, according to court records.
St. Louis Police Chief Robert Tracy said Monday the department is grieving and everyone is in shock after Lee’s death. Lee had been with the department for 18 years and will be greatly missed, he said.
“I don't think there can ever be a relief, because we’re never going to get officer David Lee back,” Tracy said during a press conference at police headquarters Monday. “I don't think there can ever be any closure. My top priority is ensuring justice is served for my officer who was killed in a line of duty, and supporting my officers who are grieving and the family that has lost a husband and a father.”
Lee is the 167th officer to die on duty, according to the department. The 18-year veteran died in surgery at St. Louis University Hospital after the vehicle crash.
