A gang member who was filmed pointing his gun at cops in Omaha, Nebraska, during a routine traffic stop then firing it at them before being shot himself will have his $250,000 medical bill covered by the city.
John Ezell Jr. is still in custody awaiting his next court date on charges of attempted murder, first-degree assault of an officer and weapons offenses.
In September, he injured officer Ken Fortune and shot at others after they stopped him in a car.
He was in the passenger's seat and was seen pointing his gun at the officers in a photograph that went viral.
The traffic stop happened at 4pm. Ezell and his driver initially complied but then tried to flee when they realized they were being stopped by three gang officers.
The officers gave chase in their unmarked car until the suspects came to a stop sign.
Then Fortune approached the suspects' vehicle on foot. Ezell Jr. shot him twice in close range then got out of the vehicle and started running.
He fired his weapon at the other two police officers but was brought down by their bullets and was taken to the hospital where he spent a month before being released into the general jail population.
Because he does not have health insurance, the city is 100 percent liable for his care because he was in its custody and because his injuries were caused by officers of the city.
'Since the medical need arose from an incident in which there was a shooting (involving Omaha police), that unfortunately makes us liable,' Assistant City Attorney Jeff Bloom told
Omaha.com.