Police add that the suspect the officer was trying to arrest was also hit by the driver and is in the hospital as well.
ATLANTA — An Atlanta Police officer is fighting for his life after the department said he was hit by an alleged drunk driver Tuesday morning while trying to perform an arrest.
Police were dispatched around midnight to an Exxon Gas Station at 3843 Jonesboro Road SE regarding a man threatening a woman with a weapon. When officers arrived, they said they immediately found the man and said he matched the description given by dispatchers.
According to a statement, the officers tried to speak to the man, but police said he ran into a wooded area. Officers made a perimeter around the area and saw the man trying to escape. Atlanta Police said they followed the suspect on foot, attempting to detain him on a city street where cars were coming through.
The department said the suspect was resisting arrest when the two were hit by a car “driven by what appeared to be an intoxicated male driver.”
An officer, later identified as Robert Golden, “sustained multiple injuries” but was stable, APD said. They added that the suspect had non-life-threatening injuries. He was arrested, transported to Grady detention and charged with three counts of obstruction, one count of a pedestrian in the roadway and one count of discharging a controlled substance.
Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said they’ll be with the family of that injured officer until he fully recovers. He called the medical staff at Grady Hospital, who is assisting the officer, “incredible heroes.”
Golden has been with APD for a little over three years, working in the southeast Atlanta area.
Deputies with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office did arrest the 32-year-old driver who hit the suspect and officer. He was charged with:
- DUI-driving under the influence of alcohol
- Too fast for conditions/prima facie speed
- Driving-improper/erratic lane change
- Two counts; serious injury by vehicle
This is a developing story. Check back often for new information.
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