Newport News, Va. – A State Trooper was hospitalized after a police pursuit in Newport News this morning.
A Virginia State Police trooper attempted to stop a vehicle along Interstate 64 in Newport News at 6:02 a.m., after witnessing the vehicle using the “Authorized Vehicles Only” crossover near the 252 mile marker.
The vehicle, a 2002 Honda, stopped briefly but then accelerated and sped away from the trooper down I-64.
The Honda exited the interstate at Exit 255 and proceeded onto Campbell Road, eventually stopping at a dead end in an apartment complex, police say.
The driver, 42-year-old Jeremiah Gibson III, got out of the car and ran. He was apprehended within minutes by state police with assistance from the Newport News Police Department.
Gibson has been charged with DUI habitual offender, felony count of eluding police, possession of marijuana, providing false information to law enforcement and failure to obey a highway sign.
The trooper was taken to Mary Immaculate Hospital for treatment of a serious, but not life-threatening injury, sustained during the foot pursuit.
Another incident also occurred while a state trooper was responding to assist with this pursuit. He was traveling sotuh on J. Clyde Morris Boulevard/Rt. 17 with lights and sirens activated as he approached the intersection of J. Clyde Blvd and Jefferson Ave. When the trooper continued through the intersection, his patrol car collided with a 2000 Buick LeSabre that was traveling eastbound on Jefferson Ave. The impact caused the patrol car to hit a 2013 Mazda CX-9 stopped at the traffic light.
The driver of the LeSabre was treated for minor injuries. The trooper and driver of the Mazda were not injured.
