NLV officers shoot at reckless driver

Jen Lawson

Thursday, Nov. 4, 2004 | 9:50 a.m.

Two North Las Vegas Police officers shot at a reckless driver who intentionally rammed their patrol cars and hit another car before jumping from his pickup truck and running away Wednesday night, police said.

An officer chased him and took him into custody after the series of wrecks in the area of Azure Avenue and Pecos Road.

Officer Tim Bedwell, police spokesman, said shortly after 11 p.m. a man saw the Chevrolet pickup truck run into a parked car, so the witness began following the truck and called police.

The driver of the truck noticed the car was following him and tried to get away, then intentionally slammed into the car, forcing it onto the center median on Pecos, Bedwell said.

The first officer to arrive witnessed the collision. The suspect put the pickup into reverse and hit the cruiser, Bedwell said. The officer got out as the suspect backed up again. The officer fired several shots at the truck, Bedwell said.

The second officer got to the scene as the officer was firing, and the suspect crossed three lanes of travel and hit the cruiser head-on, he said. That officer got out of his car and fired shots at the pickup as well.

The suspect tried to drive away, but his truck was so banged up that he did not get far, Bedwell said. The first officer, whose cruiser was still driveable, chased him. The suspect jumped from the car and the officer ran after him, quickly taking him into custody.

The suspect, whose name was not released, suffered minor injuries and was taken to University Medical Center. The two officers and the witnesses also received minor injuries but were not hospitalized.