An Atlanta police officer is in critical condition after he and an armed suspect were struck by an alleged drunk driver during a foot chase near the Atlanta Expo Center.
By Chelsea Prince Source The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
A police officer chasing an armed person through a southeast Atlanta street was hit by an alleged drunk driver Monday night, Channel 2 Action News reported.
Both the officer and the armed person were struck and taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, where the officer was in critical condition, Atlanta police Chief Darin Schierbaum told the news station. The driver accused of hitting them was arrested.
Schierbaum pledged the full support of the agency for the officer, whom he said was protecting his community when he was injured.
“The Atlanta Police Department will be here, with the family, until he makes a full recovery,” he said from outside the hospital.
According to Channel 2, the chase began just before midnight in the 3800 block of Jonesboro Road near the Atlanta Expo Center. The injured officer responded to a disturbance, saw the person with a gun and began running after him.
Traffic came to a stop as the officer and gunman ran by, but one motorist suspected of DUI drove around the stopped cars, hitting them both, Schierbaum told the news station. A black Volkswagen with heavy front-end damage was seen at the scene.
The names of the officer and the others involved were not released. Schierbaum said the armed person’s injuries were not severe and he was in custody. The officer’s road to recovery would be a long one, he said.