Neighbors say police car endangered kids

By Alexis Stevens

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Residents of an Atlanta apartment complex say an officer endangered children when he hit a fleeing suspect with his car.

The suspect, a 20-year-old already wanted by police for weapons charges, tossed what looked like bags of drugs onto the roof of a home when he saw officers Monday afternoon, police said.

He tried to run, but he didn't get far. Another officer coming to assist in the arrest hit the suspect with his police car and knocked him down, Officer Kim Jones with Atlanta police said.

The suspect, who was alert and not seriously injured, was transported to Grady Memorial Hospital for evaluation, Jones said.

The incident occurred at 85 Mt. Zion Road near Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, said Capt. Jolyon Bundridge of the Atlanta Fire Department. Firefighters used a ladder to recover the evidence, police said.

Residents complained that the officer endangered children playing nearby when he drove over sidewalks.

“He came around this corner at a rate that would kill one of these little people instantly,” Aleph Gray told Channel 2 Action News.

Police Chief George Turner went to the scene and said there would be an investigation of the incident, Channel 2 reported.

“We were chasing a very violent individual, as I understand it, but we’ll go through the investigation and determine what we did and why we were able to do it,” Turner said.

--Staff writer Ty Tagami contributed to this report.