Eric Parker

Eric Parker (Limestone County Jail)

A crowd-funding page has been created on IndieGoGo for Eric Parker, the Madison police officer who has been fired from his job and arrested for third-degree assault of 57-year-old Sureshbhai Patel.

In a case that has sparked international interest, a dashboard camera video appears to show Parker slamming Patel to the ground after confronting him regarding a call from a neighbor about suspicious behavior.

Patel,who is from India and had been in Madison visiting his son, has undergone spinal surgery and remains partially paralyzed in Huntsville Hospital.

The donation page has a goal of $10,000. As of midmorning Saturday it had raised about $1,165. The description says, simply, "To help with Parker's bills, etc. Any donation is greatly appreciated."

Parker has received messages of support from friends online, who have said, "I've never seen him treat anyone with any disrespect. He may have made a mistake here, but we all do from time to time," and described him as "one of the good guys."

Edited to add: The fundraising page for Patel on GoFundMe.com has raised more than $133,000 as of midday Saturday.