Dash & bodycam shows suspect fleeing a traffic stop with the officer on top of the hood and car

An Illinois man who seriously injured a Carroll police officer during a traffic stop nearly two years ago has pleaded guilty to one of the charges levied against him in Carroll County District Court.

Court records show 29-year-old Dennis James Guider Jr. of Chicago Heights, Ill. was initially charged with eluding causing serious injury and serious injury by vehicle, both class D felonies, following the March 5, 2021, incident.

He will plead guilty to only one of the class D felonies after reaching a plea agreement with prosecutors. Authorities say Guider was a passenger in a vehicle in the 1800 block of Kittyhawk Avenue when law enforcement learned he had an outstanding arrest warrant out of Illinois and attempted an arrest.

Guider pushed the driver out of the car and attempted to flee, with the officer hanging on to the vehicle’s hood. The officer was tossed from the car after Guider struck a culvert and sustained fractures to his back. Guider eluded arrest and fled back to Illinois.

He was extradited back to Carroll County earlier this month from the Illinois Department of Corrections, where he was serving time for an unrelated charge. A sentencing date is yet to be scheduled.

A class D felony in Iowa carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison and $7,500 in fines.