A Cedar Falls man, sentenced to prison for attempting to run over a state trooper nearly two years ago, has been denied an appeal. Thirty-one-year-old William Filippo Junior was convicted of assaulting a police officer with a weapon, eluding, and O.W.I. second offense.
The incident happened February 16th of 2007, two miles south of Charles City on Highway 18. Iowa State Trooper Mark Domino was trying to pull over Filippo for erratic driving. When domino got out of his squad car, Filippo allegedly ran his S.U.V. at the trooper. Domino then fired his service weapon at Filippo, striking him in the head.
Filippo recovered and following his conviction, he was sentenced to six years in prison. In his appeal, Filippo claimed there was insufficient evidence for his conviction on the assault while displaying a dangerous weapon charge. However, the Iowa Court of Appeals countered that there is legal precedent for a vehicle to be considered a dangerous weapon.