11/02/16 North Little Rock, AR – Man Harassing Children At Bus Stop – High On Drugs – Steals Patrol Car – Dragged Officer 40-50 Feet – Crashes Into House – Serious Injuries To Officer

Novemebr 2, 2016

arkansasonline.com

While attempting to keep a man from stealing a patrol vehicle, a North Little Rock police officer grabbed onto the passenger door and was dragged 40 to 50 yards before the car crashed into a nearby house, a spokesman said.

Sgt. Brian Dedrick, a spokesman for North Little Rock police, said the officer was thrown into a fence on impact, injuring his head and hip. He was taken to UAMS Medical Center for treatment.

“He hit his head pretty hard. They were doing some scans,” Dedrick said, adding that the injuries don’t appear to be life-threatening.

Twenty-five-year-old Ranthony Stephenson, the man police said tried to abscond with the car, was taken to Baptist Health Medical Center in North Little Rock for treatment.

The escape attempt began shortly after 7:30 a.m. when officers were sent to the 800 block of North F Street, responding to a report of a “partially unclothed”

Stephenson harassing children at a bus stop, a news release said. He reportedly assaulted someone there, too, police said.

Officers arrived and located Stephenson. He took off and climbed onto the roof of a storage building, the release said.

Police converged on the building, which was behind one of the houses on F Street, to try to apprehend him. Dedrick said the officer had pulled his car relatively close to the storage building, so it was close by when Stephenson decided to jump off the building and get behind the wheel. The officer grabbed onto the passenger side door to try to stop him, Dedrick said.

Half a football field later, Stephenson crashed the car into the house. Dedrick said officers used a stun gun on him multiple times and used pepper spray to apprehend him, adding that investigators suspect Stephenson was high on drugs.

Dedrick said Stephenson was taken to jail sometime around 2:15 p.m. He faces charges of second-degree battery, aggravated assault, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, fleeing and theft of property.