Officer slams patrol vehicle into pastor she had an affair with, Texas police say

A Texas police officer is accused of slamming her patrol vehicle into a pastor she’d had an affair with, investigators say.

Tarlesha Chambers James, a 47-year-old officer with the METRO Police Department, is charged with aggravated assault of a family member, according to court documents filed May 14.

McClatchy News is not naming the pastor because he has not been charged with a crime.

Investigators say that on Monday, May 13, in the Houston-area community of Humble, the pastor contacted James, asking her to bring him a spare key fob he had given her, as his was not working.

Moments later, he saw a white SUV pull into the apartment complex and come toward him. Believing it was going to hit him, he jumped out of the way, he told authorities. He was taken to a hospital with injuries including a broken hand, knee and rib — all of resulted from his leap to safety, he said.

But investigators don’t think that story is the whole truth.

The “injuries are not consistent with jumping out of the way,” but are “consistent with actually being struck with a motor vehicle,” documents said. Investigators said they believe the pastor is lying about being hit in an attempt to cover for James.

McClatchy News reached out to James’ attorney for comment but did not immediately hear back.

James and the pastor have known each other for eight years and she is a member of his congregation, police said. They had an affair during that time, but the pastor told police it ended when his wife found out, though he and James continued to be “BFFs.”

Video captured by cameras at the apartment complex show the SUV “accelerating” toward the pastor, police said. Then the driver is seen helping the pastor get up off the ground and into the passenger seat of his own vehicle before she drives them away in it, documents said.

A witness told investigators they saw James standing over the pastor while he was on the ground and she yelled, “I told you not to (expletive) with me!”

James’ attorney, Letitia Quinones-Hollins, told KTRK that the pastor’s version of events is correct.

“There is not a crime here. She did not hit him with her vehicle, and neither did she leave the scene,” she said.

James has been put on administrative leave but will be cleared of charges “once the DA’s office hears the actual facts,” she told the station.

Humble is a roughly 20-mile drive northeast of downtown Houston.

This story was originally published May 16, 2024 at 12:03 PM with the headline "Officer slams patrol vehicle into pastor she had an affair with, Texas police say."