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Shocking video footage posted to social media on Saturday night shows a Tacoma, Wash., Police vehicle colliding with a group of pedestrians.
At least two pedestrians have been hospitalized as a result of the incident, the Pierce County Force Investigation Team (PCFIT) told reporters at a late-night press conference, according to KOMO- Seattle TV.
The police department turned the investigation over to the PCFIT.
One of the patients has been released, KOMO reported. The condition of the patient remaining in the hospital was “unknown” at midnight PT Sunday.
Police responded to the area on reports of driver street racing and “burnout” and “donuts” drawing spectators, the Tacoma Police Department said in a statement to Fox News,
About 100 spectators and several vehicles were blocking an intersection in the city center, the department said.
When the police car arrived, members of the crowd gathered around the vehicle, collided with it and appeared to threaten the police, prompting the officer to try to extricate himself.
He had used the cruiser’s megaphone to address the swarming crowd, the Tacoma News Tribune reported.
“The officer, fearing for his safety, tried to back up but was unable to do so due to the crowds,” the statement said, adding that the officer’s lights and siren were on when he returned. forward, members of the crowd falling to the side or hurrying out of the path of the vehicle.
WARNING: VIDEO GRAPHICS
“He was afraid they would break his glass,” Tacoma police spokeswoman Wendy Haddow said, according to the News Tribune.
The officer at the wheel stopped the cruiser when it was safe and called for medical help, the statement added.
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“I am concerned that our department is experiencing yet another use of lethal force incident,” Tacoma Acting Police Chief Mike Ake said. “I send my thoughts to anyone who was injured in tonight’s event, and I pledge to cooperate fully with our department in the independent investigation and to assess the actions of the department’s response during the event. ‘incident.”
The officer will be put on leave during the investigation, Elizabeth Pauli, director of Tacoma City, told the News Tribune.
It was not immediately clear whether the police officer or any of the pedestrians involved in the reported street racing would face charges – although the video posted by a reporter from the Tacoma News Tribune appears to show members of the crowd. handcuffs.
A group of protesters gathered at the scene following the incident, according to a reporter from Q13 FOX.
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