(WSVN) - A police officer is in recovery after a violent police pursuit in Palm Beach County.
North Palm Beach police said one of their officers was hit by a driver during a traffic stop, Sunday night.
After that officer was hit, John Perrault said the driver took out his mailbox and a tree.
Police said, 22-year-old John Marshall, from Lake Worth, was responsible for the chaos.
Zach Baltrun witnessed the incident.
“There was a car in my yard, a police officer was approaching him with, I believe, his firearm, and the guy reversed and hit the police officer, and sped off,” he said.
According to police, they tried to pull Marshall over for speeding, but surveillance video showed the moments he decided to keep going as he ran over the officer in the process.
“It was pretty loud, he hit it going pretty quick,” recalled Baltrun.
After the crash, that officer was struggling to get up while Marshall sped off.
Perrault realized just how close the driver was to his vehicle.
“My car was parked pretty much in the exact same spot, last night, so he just missed it,” said Perrault.
Neighbors said the sirens woke them up and an echoing noise was followed by the calls of an officer in distress.
“It just sounded like someone was moaning, and wailing, and even crying,” Perrault recalled. “It was a little startling.”
The injured officer was hit in the leg and taken to the hospital for treatment.
Marshall was later arrested after officers found him and his abandoned car.
He’s been charged with aggravated battery and fleeing and eluding police.
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