Waukegan Police: Weekend Confrontation With Suspects Was Textbook Example Of Restraint
(CBS) – It was an intense showdown caught on video between police and suspects in a stolen car, escalating with an officer being dragged by the vehicle.
CBS 2's Mai Martinez talks with one of the officers involved.
"It's definitely a scary situation," says Waukegan Police Officer Andrew Orozco.
He is talking about Saturday's confrontation between officers and suspects in a stolen car.
In video a witness shot, you can hear Orozco's K-9 partner, Cash, barking as the suspects refuse to get out of the vehicle.
Using batons, officers broke a window and got the driver out, but a passenger jumped into the driver's seat and took off, dragging and injuring an officer.
"This situation could've escalated to deadly force. However, it didn't," Police Chief Wayne Walles says.
He adds: "I was proud of the restraint that they showed."
Orozco says with so many people in the area and with the officer clinging to the car's door, it was just too dangerous to shoot. He says police must make split-second decisions in situations like the one that occurred over the weekend.
"When it's happening, you don't have time to think about any of the viral or how is this going to look on Facebook or any of that kind of stuff. It's the last thing that's on your mind," he says.
"You're thinking another task in front of you. You're thinking about trying to keep everyone safe, including even the suspect. The last thing we want to do is use our weapons if we don't have to."
Chief Walles was so impressed by the officers' work he plans to use the incident to train other officers.
As for the stolen car, it was recovered Monday night, but the driver and other passengers are still at large.
