Moment screaming woman 'is savaged by fire ants while her face was held to the ground by police who were arresting her'

Shocking police bodycam footage captured a screaming woman being attacked by fire ants while her face was held to the ground during her arrest, a lawsuit alleges. 

The painful biting incident happened in 2021 when the plaintiff, Taylor Rogers, was arrested by the Santa Fe Police Department.

Per the lawsuit, Rogers was driving with her son when an officer started yelling at her to stop. Court documents said Rogers panicked because officers pounded on her vehicle and pointed their gun at her, and she went the wrong way accidentally.

That's when Santa Fe PD Sergeant Ruben Espinoza hit Rogers's car, per the lawsuit. Another officer, Officer Christian Carranza, arrived at the scene, and allegedly became aggressive with Rogers.

In a news conference Saturday, Rogers's lawyer Randall Kallinen described what his client said happened at the scene. 

A woman who was left covered in bug bites is suing the City of Santa Fe, Texas after claiming local police handcuffed her shoved her face down in a bed of fire ants

The incident happened in 2021 when the plaintiff, Taylor Rogers (pictued), was arrested by the Santa Fe Police Department.

Pictured: Bug bites covering Rogers's neck and face, which she claims came from her encounter with the police

'Taylor Rogers was stopped by Santa Fe police for no reason, thrown on the ground right into a bed of fire ants in the middle of the day and then held there while screaming,' said Kallinen.

The bodycam footage shared with local CBS affiliate KHOU shows Rogers screaming, pleading for help as the ants crawled on her face and started biting her.

'Ants are on my face, ants are getting on my face. Please, help,' Rogers yelled at Caranza. 'How could y'all do this? Ants are on my face, please let go.'

Per the court documents, Caranza allegedly twisted Rogers's legs and hogtied her, and she couldn't swipe the ants off her face or body. She claimed the officers didn't bother to help her swipe the ants away or move her to a different location.

The aggressive ants bite humans who get to close and inject them with a venom which causes a burning sensation and which gives them their name.

Fire ant stings can even prove deadly to people with certain medical conditions. In 2023, Georgia mom Cathy Weed, 43, was killed by an allergic reaction after stepping on a fire ant hill at her home.   

'Is it torture? Yeah that's a strong word but I call it torture,' Kallinen said. 'When the police hold you down in a fire ant bed and you're saying 'fire ants' and screaming, and they keep you there, what is that?'

To make matters worse, Rogers said the ordeal happened in front of her 9-year-old son, who was sitting in the backseat of their car.

The police have a different story and defended their actions.

Espinoza said when he tried to stop Rogers, she became furious and attempted to make an illegal turn into her son's school parking lot.

She then allegedly ignored him and drove toward the back parking lot. That's when Caranza got involved.

'When she [the officer] gave the description of the vehicle, I immediately knew who it was. So, I approached the intersection and observed Miss Rogers fleeing,' Espinoza said. 'She was also passing a vehicle in the grassy area on the right side when I tried to get in front of her to stop. She didn't put her vehicle in reverse and fled from me.'

Espinoza then said he used his police car to stop Rogers. Cornered, Rogers was pulled out of the car by other Santa Fe officers and placed in handcuffs.

Police shared images of Rogers's arrest, pointing out that there were no fire ants or ant farms in sight.

They also claimed the bodycam footage was misleading, and that Rogers was actually treated with 'respect and dignity.' 

The bodycam footage shared with local CBS affiliate KHOU shows Rogers screaming, pleading for help as the ants crawled on her face and started biting her

In a news conference Saturday, Rogers's lawyer Randall Kallinen (pictured) said what happened to his client at the scene was a form of 'torture'

Rogers (pictured) is now suing three years later, asking for the two cops to be held accountable, and for the Santa Fe Police Department to go through proper de-escalation training

'They stopped the clip that they provided to you. The officer says, 'Calm down and we will lift you up,'' Espinoza said. 'At that point, she said, 'OK I will calm down,' and they lifted her up immediately.'

Espinoza said Rogers pleaded guilty to fleeing from police while Kallinen said she was sentenced for deferred adjudication.

Rogers is now suing, asking for the two cops to be held accountable, and for the Santa Fe Police Department to go through proper de-escalation training.