SAN ANTONIO – A federal judge has cleared the way for a former Universal City police officer to take a major car manufacturer to trial.
Jeremy Bellamy believes his assigned patrol unit nearly killed him.
“It’s been a tough road,” Bellamy said.
Bellamy spent 16 years with UCPD and countless hours on patrol. According to court records, his last unit was a 2019 Ford Explorer Police Interceptor.
“(The vehicle is) their office,” Jeremy Bellamy’s wife, Jackie, said. “It’s running all day. They’re running code in high traffic.”
According to a lawsuit filed by Bellamy, he was in his police car with the engine idling in March 2021.
A woman called 911 after noticing Bellamy was unconscious, the suit states.
Bellamy was in the Ford Explorer for three hours, according to court documents. After he was rushed to the hospital, Bellamy took a blood test.
Court records said doctors diagnosed Bellamy with acute carbon monoxide poisoning.
KSAT Investigates asked Bellamy how the diagnosis has affected him.
“Just really, my memory has really been, you know, taken a big hit,” Bellamy said.
His mental health was also affected by the diagnosis, he said.
“It appears that, after the incident, that’s what triggered all my nightmares,” Bellamy said.
A Ford Motor Company spokesperson declined to comment because the case is still pending.
Bellamy’s attorney, Maureen Farrell, said there are defects in the car’s manufacturing and design.
She said Ford did not do enough to warn police departments about those risks.
“For me, Ford kind of sits in the same shoes as a felon fleeing on foot who tries to hurt Jeremy,” Farrell said.
“That’s a pretty strong comparison,” KSAT said in response.
“It is a strong comparison,” Farrell said. “But in fact, you know, in some ways, I think that Ford’s conduct is even worse.”
Bellamy and his wife believe Ford needs to be held responsible.
“Had they taken responsibility and fix the issues years ago, we wouldn’t be sitting here right now,” Jackie Bellamy said.
The couple will continue on their path to justice while Jeremy upholds it.
Bellamy is still a police officer who drives a newer model of the car he believes nearly killed him.
“When I get into it, it’s my windows down,” Bellamy said. “… I get assigned a car. So, it’s either I drive it or I don’t work.”
Carbon monoxide concerns have been raised before regarding Ford Explorer Police interceptors.
In 2017, KXAN in Austin reported that the city’s police department pulled nearly 400 of those SUVs from patrol.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration spent nearly six years investigating more than 1,500 other complaints for older models.
In a 2023 report, NHTSA found those models with higher levels of carbon monoxide have “almost always” been outfitted for lights and sirens.
The report found no safety defects in the cars themselves.
Read more reporting on the KSAT Investigates page.
