A Bronx cop shot and critically injured a young driver who allegedly attempted to mow officers down with his vehicle during an attempted traffic stop on Sunday night, police reported.
Authorities said the 18-year-old male driver, a New Jersey resident who was struck in the head, is recovering at Lincoln Hospital, with charges against him pending. Three individuals inside the vehicle at the time were not injured, but were brought to the 42nd Precinct for questioning.
NYPD Chief of Department Michael Corey said that the Force Investigation Division is reviewing the police shooting to determine whether the officer’s actions were appropriate. Corey acknowledged that NYPD policy prohibits officers from firing “at a moving vehicle unless something other than the vehicle is being used as a weapon,” though each instance is reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Corey outlined the preliminary details of the police shooting, which occurred in Morrisania at about 8 p.m. on March 6 in the area of Boston Road and East 165th Street.
Officers from the 42nd Precinct, while on patrol in an unmarked vehicle, spotted the driver behind the wheel of a black Jeep SUV blow through several red lights while heading northbound on Boston Road, and began tailing him.
The Jeep came to a stop at Boston Road and East 165th Street, which his where the officers maneuvered their unmarked vehicle (with warning lights activated) in front of the SUV. A second unmarked police car, also with lights activated, then slipped in behind the SUV, trapping it at the intersection.
That’s when things took a turn for the worse, Corey said.
“As the officers exited their vehicle, the Jeep backed up and sped directly towards one officer, who discharged his weapon at the vehicle, striking the driver,” the chief said. “The officers immediately began to render life-saving aid to the driver.”
Moments later, EMS rushed the injured driver to Lincoln Hospital in critical condition. Two officers involved in the shooting were brought to a local hospital for evaluation, Corey added.
The responding officers’ bodycams were active during the incident, and Corey said the Force Investigation Division is reviewing the footage as part of their inquiry.
As of Monday morning, only one of the three people inside the Jeep SUV at the time of the shooting remains in custody on charges connected to an unrelated, previous incident, law enforcement sources said.
