BENTONVILLE — Johnnie Bryan Hunt Jr. denies that he intentionally struck the vehicle of another motorist in a lawsuit filed against the other driver Monday.
Hunt’s denial is included in a lawsuit that was filed Monday in Benton County Circuit Court. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Hunt by his attorney Ken Shemin against Omar Salinas-Hurtado.
Hunt, 57, of Springdale is the son of the late J.B. Hunt Sr., who founded J.B. Hunt Transport Services in Lowell. He is a member of the company's board, according to its proxy statement.
Hunt is charged with aggravated assault, a Class D felony. He previously pleaded not guilty to the charge. He is accused of striking Salinas-Hurtado’s vehicle twice with his car.
Shemin declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Roxanne Blake, the attorney for Salinas-Hurtado, said she is saddened that an "influential and powerful individual" like Hunt would file a lawsuit against her client.
The incident involving Hunt and Salinas-Hurtado occurred on June 3.
Rogers police received a call at 7:33 a.m. June 3 about a vehicle collision. One of the vehicles had left the scene, according to court documents. A dispatcher later informed officers that the two vehicles — a Cadillac Escalade and a black pickup — were stopped at an intersection, according to court documents.
Omar Salinas-Hurtado, 21, of Rogers told police he was driving the black pickup. He turned left onto North Eighth Street and into the path of the Escalade. Salinas-Hurtado said he felt an impact, but he did not stop, and the Escalade began to follow him. Salinas-Hurtado said he was making a right turn on Walnut Street when he saw the Escalade turn left. It collided with the driver's side of his vehicle, according to court documents.
Hunt stated in a police report a pickup hit his Escalade and then left the scene. He followed it to Walnut Street and, when he tried to get the license plate number, the driver of the pickup drove the vehicle toward the Escalade again.
Hunt’s lawsuit contends that Hunt was only following Salinas-Hurtado’s vehicle to get the license number, but Salinas-Hurtado fled at high speeds through school zones and residential areas. The suit also claims that Salinas-Hurtado falsely told police that he did not know that Hunt was following his vehicle after the accident.
According to the complaint, Salinas-Hurtado claims that Hunt damaged his vehicle by striking it twice and created a substantial danger of death or serious physical injury. Hunt denies the allegations by Salinas-Hurtado, the suit claims.
Hunt is seeking unspecified monetary damages from Salinas-Hurtado.
The lawsuit is assigned to Circuit Judge Brad Karren.