Two LAPD officers injured when suspected drunk driver slams into police cruiser on 57 Freeway
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Two Los Angeles police officers were injured early Tuesday when a suspected DUI driver rear-ended their cruiser on the 57 Freeway in Fullerton.
Both the officers and the woman who crashed into them suffered significant injuries, LAPD Officer Charles Miller said.
The crash came hours after a pursuit of a suspected stolen vehicle around midnight in the Newton Division, during which police say the suspect drove onto the 57 Freeway and threw something out of the vehicle. The pursuit ended in the city of Lynwood, where the driver got out of the vehicle and ran from police, according to LAPD Chief Michel Moore.
CHP officials said they responded to the freeway about 3:15 p.m. Sunday after receiving calls about a man walking through traffic near the Wilmington Avenue exit.
It’s unclear if the vehicle was stolen, but the suspect had a felony warrant for his arrest and a weapon was found in the vehicle, according to police.
After the arrest, the two LAPD officers involved in the pursuit returned to the freeway around 2 a.m. to search for the item thrown from the vehicle, police said.
The officers were northbound near the Yorba Linda Boulevard exit when a woman driving an Infiniti crashed into their cruiser, Moore said during a media briefing outside UCI Medical Center, where the officers were treated.
Wood pallets under Interstate 10 concerned Caltrans for years at the site of the fire, which forced the freeway closure and put a spotlight on the state’s lease program.
The unidentified woman suffered a laceration to her head and the officers sustained “bumps and bruises” from the crash, Moore said, but they are expected to make a full recovery.
California Highway Patrol Lt. Matthew Barnachia said the woman was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. Traffic was backed up on the freeway as police conducted their investigation.
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