Flint-Area Police Officer Fatally Shoots Fleeing Motorist
FLINT TWP. (WWJ/AP) - A man who tried to get away from police during a traffic stop was shot and killed by one of the officers.
Michigan State Police Detective Sgt. Mark Pendergraff said the shooting happened after the officer "felt threatened" during the stop Wednesday evening on Flushing Road, just east of I-75 .
Flint Township police Lt. Jim Baldwin said the officer was removing people from the car when one man got behind the wheel and tried to flee. Investigators say the man drove toward an officer, who fired two shots at the driver.
"He took off toward the officer. A vehicle can be used as a weapon. It has much more mass than a speeding bullet," Baldwin told the Flint Journal.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he later died. His name was not immediately released.
A child was in the vehicle along with another man and a woman, but they weren't injured.
The two officers involved in the stop and shooting are on administrative leave while Michigan State Police investigate.
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