Injured GCPS Resource Officer Recovering

Rolando Jimenez, the Gwinnett County Public Schools resource officer who was injured while directing traffic in February, appears to be recovering well.

In a recent Facebook post, his wife Melissa said:

Officer Jimenez is doing so good in therapy. In PT they've worked on how to use the walker and wheelchair while out in the community-automatic doors, carpet, uneven surfaces, elevator safety, etc. Officer Jimenez has also practiced using the walker to get up and down a curb or sidewalk. They also introduced him to crutches and how to properly use them. This will help tremendously once Officer Jimenez is released. It will allow him to go ip and down 2-3 steps which is not possible with a walker and only using 1 leg. He will now be able to visit my parents home which we visit often in the summer.

Jimenez was seriously injured when he was hit by a vehicle outside Lanier High School in Sugar Hill, while he was directing traffic.

According to police, Jimenez signaled for the southbound traffic to stop. Jimenez directed northbound vehicles in the left turn lane to turn left into the school property.

The driver failed to obey Jimenez’s direction to stop and struck Jimenez as the other vehicles were turning left. Jimenez went airborne and landed in the left turn lane for the high school.

The driver then struck a vehicle turning left head-on and pushed that vehicle onto Jimenez. The second vehicle, a red 2012 Ford Focus, was driven by a 17- year-old student at Lanier High.

Sydney Smigiel, 22, of Buford is facing "at minimum" charges for failing to obey traffic directions, police said.

The Facebook post continued:

Officer Jimenez has expanded his food choices a little since getting the wires out of his mouth last week. He still isn't allowed to chew but he can use his tongue to smash food against the roof of his mouth....He's lost 45 pounds since the accident. The weight loss seems to have leveled off over the last two weeks....

~ Suwanee Patch