A Pleasant Prairie Police Officer conducting a traffic stop on Sheridan Road narrowly escaped severe injury Sunday morning when a hit-and-run driver struck the officer’s squad.
The incident occurred during a traffic stop in the 11700 block of Sheridan Road at approximately 2:00 a.m. The officer stopped a suspected intoxicated driver; as the officer began to exit his vehicle, a white Dodge Charger with Illinois plates going southbound struck the squad’s driver side door, nearly ripping it from the squad’s frame. The hit-and-run driver continued southbound and was not located. The squad sustained heavy damage, but the officer was uninjured. Police took the operator of the initially stopped vehicle into custody for a first Operating While Intoxicated offense.
Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department and the Wisconsin State Patrol assisted Pleasant Prairie squads at the crash scene. Drivers are reminded that Wisconsin law requires drivers to move over or slow down and provide a “safety zone” for any squad car, ambulance, fire truck, tow truck, utility vehicle, or highway maintenance vehicle stopped on the side of a road with warning lights flashing.
Anyone with any information on the hit-and-run vehicle or driver is encouraged to contact the Pleasant Prairie Police Department at 262-694-7353.
