A 16-year-old boy was arrested after Atlanta police say he hit an officer with a stolen SUV, ran over the officer’s leg and crashed into two police cars during a chase Tuesday.
The incident started about 10:45 p.m. when officers noticed a black Mitsubishi Montero with a broken headlight at Centra Villa Drive and Campbellton Road, police spokeswoman Officer Kim Jones said.
The officers ran the SUV’s tag, learned the Mitsubishi was stolen, stopped the vehicle and attempted to take the driver into custody.
One of the officers opened the driver’s door “in an attempt to pull the driver from the vehicle,” Jones said.
The teen accelerated, “dragging the officer until the stolen vehicle crashed into a police vehicle,” she said.
The driver put the SUV in reverse, “striking another police vehicle” and knocking 10-year veteran Atlanta police Officer Andrew Fincher to the ground with the driver’s door, police told Channel 2 Action News.
While the cop was on the ground, “the stolen vehicle ran over the officer’s leg” and headed south on I-285, Jones said.
It wasn’t long before the teen exited onto Washington Road, ditched the SUV and attempted to run away in East Point.
He was arrested without injury in the 3100 block of Hammarskjold Drive. His name has not been released.
The officer, who was alert early Wednesday, was transported to Grady Memorial Hospital. He is expected to make a full recovery.
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