Man accused of driving drunk, hitting Bethel Park officer
BETHEL PARK, Pa. (KDKA) - A Bethel Park officer was struck by a vehicle driven by an impaired driver, the police chief said.
A traffic stop for a red-light violation on South Park Road in Bethel Park turned dangerous on Tuesday night. Bethel Park Police Chief Timothy O'Connor said an impaired driver flew by the traffic stop without headlights on and struck an officer who was providing backup.
"We believe the mirror first impacted his arm and torso, knocking him into a stopped police vehicle and then his foot was run over," said O'Connor.
He said the driver, 67-year-old Richard Caporal, kept driving, but another officer ran after him on foot and flagged Caporal down.
The criminal complaint said the officer could smell alcohol on Caporal and his speech was slurred, and he told police he had one beer.
The police chief said Caporal was driving on DUI-related driving suspension and he has around 14 prior DUI convictions.
"He is under suspension for being DUI, so he also should not be driving, also didn't have his headlights on at the same time. It is very frustrating when people are convicted then they continue to drive. The one thing I say is you don't run into a lot of these cases anymore," O'Connor said.
The injured officer was released from the hospital and is now recovering at home. His fellow officers are thankful he wasn't seriously hurt.
"We are very fortunate because if he had hit the officer flush with the front end, we may not be having this talk right now," O'Connor said.
The chief said this incident was a reminder of how dangerous the job can be. Ironically, his police department honored fallen officers on Wednesday. He said the "Honor Roll Riders" biked for miles to the department's stone memorial.
"Officers are always one call away from being harmed or worse. We have police memorial day coming up and we always take a week out of the month of May to acknowledge the sacrifices of those that go out they never know the dangers they are going to face," he said.
Caporal is in the Allegheny County Jail. He's charged with aggravated assault, aggravated assault by vehicle while DUI, two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol or controlled substance, accidents involving death or personal injury while not properly licensed, driving under suspension, reckless driving and criminal mischief.