Yuma City Administrator resigns in the wake of hit-and-run hearing
Philip Rodriguez to leave year's end - 13 On Your Side's Arlette Yousif reports
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - City of Yuma Administrator Phil Rodriguez has resigned from his position Monday, effective January 22nd, 2022.
Audio from one of many 9-1-1 calls made after the hit and run Rodriguez is accused of includes the driver of the other vehicle, Richard Marzec, saying "the guy that hit and ran showed up out of nowhere in the parking lot and started harassing me."
Rodriguez is accused of being the aggressor in a collision that occurred back in June of this year. Monday, he faced a judge and the alleged victim.
"He started to swerve into my lane, gesturing at me and eventually impacting my vehicle. At that point, I was in kinda disbelief as to what this person was doing because it was intentional what was going on there because he was dodging in my lane as if trying to force me off the roadway," says Richard Marzec.
Dashcam footage shows what happened on Interstate 8, heading west on the morning of June 3.
The dark grey Toyota 4Runner is shown getting extremely close to Marzec's van. Contact between the two vehicles is made before the 4Runner takes off.
"Why would somebody be doing this to me? I’m going down the road in the slow lane," explains Marzec.
Marzec, a retired border patrol agent of 23 years based out of San Diego, who also assisted the Yuma Sector, says he was surprised to see Rodriguez after exiting the freeway.
"Then when he next encountered me at the Days Inn, he was angrily yelling at me and gesturing and as if challenging me to exit my vehicle. I’m not gonna do that," says Marzec.
Marzec says there were a total of four encounters over several hours and another traffic infraction after leaving the Days Inn.
"He proceeded up to the intersection of 16th and Sunridge. I pulled in behind him. I was on the phone with dispatch and I wanted to give them the exact license plate number. He looked in his mirror, he saw me, and then he ran the red light and proceeded west on 16th,' explains Marzec.
A plea agreement is in the works between the Yuma County District Attorney’s Office and Rodriguez's Phoenix-area council. But the new judge on the case says he wants more information before making a decision.
Judge Juan Guerrero also took time during the hearing to listen to Marzec explain his side of the incident.
"I did some review over the weekend. There are some concerns and some issues I have with this plea agreement," says Yuma County Judge Juan Guerrero.
Judge Guerrero says he thinks the plea agreement should include some money for the second driver if he is officially recognized as a victim by the court.
In a statement read by Yuma Mayor Doug Nicholls, the "resignation is not reflective of [Rodriguez's] guilt or innocence, and [they] have full faith in the justice system to render a decision that is true and fair."
Rodriguez will be back in court in December regarding the plea agreement acceptance or denial.
