LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Former Metropolitan Sewer District employee Roger Burdette was watching pornography on his phone when he crashed into Louisville Metro Police detective Deidre Mengedoht's cruiser in 2018, court documents say.
According to reports downloaded from his phone, Burdette visited a URL that opens to a pornographic video at around 2:11 p.m. on Christmas Eve 2018. The Safari app he used to visit the site was then closed at 2:20 p.m.
Mengedoht was conducting a traffic stop of another vehicle when Burdette's MSD truck crashed into her cruiser on I-64 at around 2:17 p.m.
"Analysis further showed that the defendant accessed other similar videos on that date and during the hours which he was working," the court filing says.
The filing also said investigators have evidence that Burdette was not prescribed to hydrocodone or clonazepam, saying downloads from his cell phone show Burdette discuss obtaining pills "through text message with an individual."
"Further, the defense has been provided with medical records of the defendant, none of which provide evidence of a current prescription for either substance," the filing says.
Commonwealth's Attorney Tom Wine said the evidence is relevant to "prove that the defendant’s actions on December 24, 2018 were under circumstances manifesting an extreme indifference to the value of human life."
Burdette was charged with murder, four counts of wanton endangerment, driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol and failing to give the right of way to a stopped emergency vehicle.
"The River City FOP has always maintained our belief that Mr. Burdette is criminally responsible for the tragic collision that killed Detective Mengedoht," the the Fraternal Order of Police said in a statement. "Sadly, no amount of new information or evidence in this case will bring Deidre back to us."
Mengedoht's son received nearly $14 million in a settlement against Burdette and MSD.
RELATED: Son of LMPD detective killed in 2018 crash to receive nearly $14M settlement against MSD, ex-driver
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