KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It is a traffic stop a rookie police officer will never forget.
On Tuesday,
NBC Action News showed the dash camera video of a suspect who crashed into a police car, before leading officers on a chase across the state line.
"It's a reminder that nothing we do is routine," said Officer James Price, a 26-year-old cop who is nearing his first year on the force.
On Oct. 23 around 11 p.m. Price pulled over a driver near Penn Vally Park because it was parked past the posted curfew of 10 p.m. During the stop, Price discovered the driver had some outstanding traffic warrants and prepared to make an arrest. With the assistance of another officer, Price told the driver why he was being arrested, and took out his handcuffs.
"As soon as that first handcuff touched his wrist, he decided he wasn't going to jail and he bolted," Price said.
The driver jumped back behind the wheel as Price and the other officer tried to pull him out of the car. They could hear him pushing on the gas pedal and see him trying to put it in gear. Just as a third officer arrived, the car shot forward.
"I thought we were going for a ride, clear down the street," he said.
Instead, the car swerved into the police car, narrowly missing the officer as he jumped out of the way. Price grabbed his taser and fired, but only one probe hit the driver, rendering it ineffective. After the officers made sure no one was hurt, the chase began.
Price pursued the car, which was driving without lights, across the state line into the narrow streets of Kansas City, Kan. In the video, the suspect nearly avoids a T-bone collision before hitting a vehicle near 18th and Central. Police finally caught the driver after a foot chase through the neighborhood.
At the scene, the rookie cop wondered what had caused the driver to snap so quickly. On Wednesday night, as he left for his patrol, he said it won't be the last time he will be forced to learn on the fly.
"If we could train for every single situation, we wouldn't get out of the academy for 20 years," he said. "You just never know what's going to happen."
Walter Morris, 29, is charged with two counts of second-degree assault and attempted assault with a deadly weapon against a law enforcement officer. He is also charged with resisting arrest and putting people at risk while fleeing police.
