On May 23, Scott Douglas Taylor was indicted by a grand jury in Bell County for criminally negligent homicide in the death of Texas Trooper Thomas Nipper.
Trooper Nipper was killed on November 4, 2017, when he was conducting a traffic stop on Interstate 35 in Temple and a pickup truck driven by Taylor struck the rear of the trooper's unit, DPS said.
The indictment says Taylor caused the death of Trooper Nipper while driving and operating a motor vehicle by the following:
- Failing to maintain a single lane of travel
- Failing to lookout for other vehicles on the roadway
- Failing to keep a proper lookout for other vehicles in the path of his vehicle
- Failing to timely apply the brakes to his vehicle in order to avoid the possibility of a collision in which Nipper was an occupant
- Improperly entering onto and driving on an approved shoulder of the roadway
- Failing to vacate the right lane of travel or to reduce the speed of the vehicle Taylor was driving to 20 mph under the posted speed limit while approaching a stationary emergency vehicle with its lights activated on the side of the roadway
The indictment continues that these acts and missions, individually and in combination, resulted in the crash on November 4 that caused the death of Tropper Nipper.
Taylor was arrested on May 25 in Burnet County and transported to Bell County. His bond was set at $100,000, Bell County District Attorney confirmed. According to jail records, Taylor is no longer in custody.
An arraignment date has been set for June 29.
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