Screwdriver-Wielding Man Bites Piece Off Boston Officer's Head During Struggle
BOSTON (CBS) – A Hyde Park man is facing multiple charges after he allegedly attacked Boston Police officers with a screwdriver and bit a chunk of flesh out of one officer's head.
Just after 5 p.m. on Wednesday, officers were requested to help Fallon Ambulance on Central Ave. A court order requiring a 22-year-old man be transported to the hospital had been issued, but the suspect refused and became combative with officers.
Police say the man, whose identity was not released, began swinging his fists at officers.
"A violent struggle ensued during which the male attempted to punch, kick, and bite the four officers while they attempted to handcuff him," Boston Police said. "The officers were struck multiple times on their heads and upper bodies."
During the struggle, the man pulled out an 8-inch screwdriver from his pocket and tried to stab three officers and an EMT. Though officers wrestled the screwdriver away from the man, he bit one of the officers in the head.
The struggle continued, police say, as the suspect turned his back and kicked an officer in the chest before pulling a second screwdriver from his pocket. Police were finally able to handcuff the man and put him in the ambulance.
He was taken to Mass General Hospital. The officer who was bitten suffered what police describe as a "gruesome injury" and is expected to miss a "considerable amount of work" while recovering.
Several officers also suffered minor injuries in the scuffle.
"I am extremely upset by this incident and the fact that some of my officers were seriously injured as a result of it," Boston Police Commissioner William Evans said. "But I believe they used a great deal of restraint in their use of force, and I commend their actions and bravery."
The suspect will be charged with mayhem, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, four counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, and three counts of assault and battery on a police officer.
"It goes to show that attempting to handcuff someone who does not want to be handcuffed is not always a pretty process; and sometimes it does take multiple officers and a great deal of force, even when the subject appears to be unarmed and average build, as this male was," Evans said.
