A startled Dallas police horse injured a teenager at the State Fair of Texas this week.
Ian Macharia, 17, was hospitalized after the horse ran into him near Big Tex.
His mother Esther Macharia says her family visits the fair each year.
Their first stop Tuesday afternoon was a car show for Ian then they went to see Big Tex.
It was while she and Ian waited their turn for a photo in front of the State Fair icon, as Ian stood just over her right shoulder, Macharia says she heard a loud noise behind her.
“I could hear an impact behind me, so I turned around, and I see a big police horse was running and there was a police on it but he fell down. So, then I looked down and my son was right there,” recalled Macharia.
Video by Ian's father shows first responders lifting Ian onto a stretcher.
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He'd had a seizure, Macharia says, then passed out.
“I had moved back at that point because it was so scary thinking that he had passed away,” said Macharia, holding back tears.
Ian spent several hours at Baylor Medical Center in Dallas and was discharged later that night, says the family's attorney Ramez Shamieh.
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“We want to get more answers, we want to find out why this happened, we want to get justice for this family, and we want to make sure this doesn't happen again,” said Shamieh.
Shamieh says social media has provided some clues into what may have spooked the horse and is hoping additional videos come to light.
When asked if he believes mounted patrol horses are appropriate for State Fair crowds, Shamieh replied, “I think it’s all for show and in this specific scenario I think it was over the top.”
Dallas police said Tuesday the horse was startled while patrolling Big Tex Circle.
When the officer tried regaining control of the horse, they say a fair patron was injured and the officer was bucked off.
The officer was evaluated for injuries.
The horse returned to the mounted barn, police said in a statement.
Macharia says her son is recovering from a head injury at home and has been unable to return to his senior year at Princeton High School.
“He started saying he's having nightmares about it,” said Macharia.
She says Ian doesn’t remember what happened but says for her, it's a memory that won't go away.
“I can’t even get away from it. I’m thinking about it. I'm replaying it in my head thinking how?” said Macharia.
It's unclear what startled the horse or if it has returned to patrol. Thursday, Dallas PD did not provide additional information about the incident requested by NBC 5.
