UPDATE: The 15-year-old teen in this incident has been charged with Attempted Second Degree Murder, Aggravated Assault Against a First Responder, and Felony Evading Arrest. He is currently still being hospitalized for his injuries.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A suspect is in critical condition, and a police officer is injured Monday following a shooting and car crash involving a Memphis Police officer.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which is handling the case, said the person who was shot was a teenager.
According to police, a man told investigators he parked his gray Dodge Challenger in downtown Memphis at Tennessee Street and G.E Patterson and when he came to get his car the next morning, it was gone.
MPD said they got a call at 10:40 a.m. about the stolen vehicle that was occupied by four armed people in the 2500 block of Peres Avenue in North Memphis.
When police got there, they found the vehicle empty. However, they said one person then jumped in the driver’s seat and sped off.
Preliminary information from police states the officer fired his weapon. The suspect was struck by gunfire, and he crashed the vehicle at Chelsea and Boxwood.
We watched cell phone video of the confrontation. It showed an officer approaching the car and yelling at the teen to stay away from it. The teen ignores him, gets in the vehicle, and tries to speed away coming within inches of hitting the officer as the cop raised his gun and repeatedly pulled the trigger.
What happened before the shooting is unknown and is being investigated by TBI.
“For reasons still under investigation, the officer fired at the driver as he attempted to flee,” TBI spokeswoman Keli McAlister said.
The suspect was taken to Regional One in critical condition. The officer was also taken to a hospital for non-critical injuries from the incident. TBI said the officer was not shot.
The officer is on leave during the investigation. We asked for an update on the teen’s condition but a spokesperson with the TBI said she could not release that information.