SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – A man faces life in prison after being found guilty of attempted manslaughter in a 2019 traffic stop that injured a Central Florida deputy.
A Seminole County jury on Wednesday convicted Rocky Rudolph, 42, of attempted manslaughter, aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer, possession of firearm by a convicted felon, resisting an officer without violence, fleeing/attempting to elude, attempting to deprive an officer of protection communication and possession of cannabis.
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The charges stem from a traffic stop that left a Seminole County deputy injured in 2019, the video making national headlines. Rudolph struggles with the deputy’s gun before starting to drive, dragging him toward Interstate 4 where the deputy lets go and falls away from the SUV while Rudolph speeds off. A manhunt saw Rudolph captured within about a day’s time. He was booked into the John E. Polk Correctional Facility after being treated at a local hospital for a gunshot wound to the leg.
During a three-day trial this week, Rudolph testified he was in fear for his life. The jury sided with prosecutors who claimed Rudolph tried to run in order to avoid arrest for the possession of cannabis and of a firearm as a convicted felon.
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Rudolph faces life in prison when he’s sentenced next month, due in part to being a felon with multiple convictions, according to the State Attorney’s Office of the 18th Judicial Circuit.
That hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Feb. 14.
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