Edmonton, CAN - Man Claiming To Be Robbed / Assaulted Climbed Through Cage - Pins Police Officer Between Bumpers - Injures Officer
Cop Pinned by Cruiser with Victim Inside
Canoe Network Aug 29, 2009
A male police officer is nursing badly bruised legs after he was pinned
between his cruiser and another vehicle yesterday morning while investigating an
alleged assault in Old Strathcona.
Police said the officer was on patrol in the area of 105 Street and Whyte Avenue
just before 3 a.m. when he was approached by a man with facial injuries who
alleged he was assaulted and robbed by a group of males, said police spokesman
Dean Parthenis.
The officer told the man to get in the back seat of his cruiser and direct him
to where the alleged assault took place. They ended up pulling into an alley
just off Whyte Avenue and west of Gateway Boulevard where they found the suspect
vehicle parked.
Police said the officer parked his cruiser, got out and approached the passenger
side of the suspect vehicle to speak to the occupants. He noticed the driver was
absent and started searching around the car.
Meanwhile, the alleged victim climbed through the caged partition from the
back seat to the front of the cruiser. Suddenly, the cruiser moved forward,
pinning the officer between the two bumpers. Police are now investigating what
caused the cruiser to move forward.
A person nearby heard the officer's screams and climbed into the front seat
of the cruiser to back up the car and free the officer.
The officer was taken to the hospital with "deep muscle bruising." The vehicles
were not damaged in the incident, though the police cruiser has been sent for a
mechanical inspection. No charges have been laid at this time.
Edmonton Police Association president Sgt. Tony Simioni said there are safety
protocols in place and that individuals are normally subjected to a search and
questioning before being allowed in police cruisers.
"But with a victim, we don't want to be too stringent and invasive with respect
to searching him or her before entering the vehicle," Simioni said, adding it
comes down to officers making a judgment call.
While it is unclear whether the alleged victim moved the cruiser, this incident
raises awareness of the need for two-officer vehicles, Simioni said.
"We are always concerned with the safety of our officers. This could have been
far better handled with another officer in the car," he said, adding the
association and the Edmonton Police Service are working together to address the
issue of having more two-officer cars on the streets.