A police officer was seriously injured when he was hit by a drunk driver in San Diego.
A San Diego police officer remains hospitalized with major injuries after his vehicle was broadsided early Sunday morning by a drunk driver who ran a red light at Mission Gorge Road in Santee.
• A 21-year-old drunk driver exited a highway at high speed and ran a red light at the end of the exit.
• The drunk driver T-boned a San Diego Police Department patrol car on the driver’s side, seriously injuring a 24-year-old officer.
• The officer had to be extricated from his vehicle with the Jaws of Life. He suffered major injuries and required multiple surgeries.
• The drunk driver’s blood alcohol level was almost three times the legal limit.
The drunk driving accident occurred at about 2:30 a.m., according to an NBC News report.
San Diego Police Department Lt. Jim Walker said an on-duty police officer, later identified as 24-year-old Travis Betley, was returning to his beat after dropping off a prisoner at Las Colinas Detention Facility at the time of the accident.
Walker said 21-year-old Lake Forest (Orange County) resident Samuel Sullivan exited State Route 125 at a high rate of speed and ran the red light at the end of the exit, on Mission Gorge Road.
Sullivan’s red Toyota pickup truck slammed into the driver-side door of Betley’s patrol car. The high-speed impact knocked both vehicles off of the road.
Betley was trapped in his vehicle. It took emergency personnel almost 45 minutes to extricate him, using the Jaws of Life. The young officer suffered multiple injuries, including a broken leg and internal injuries. He was expected to undergo several surgeries that could prevent him from returning to work for up to a year, according to the NBC report.
Sullivan, who admitted he had been drinking, was arrested at the scene. He was treated for minor injuries and booked into jail.
UPDATE | January 7: Sullivan pleaded not guilty to felony drunk driving charges in relation to the accident. Deputy District Attorney James Romo said Sullivan’s blood alcohol level at the time of the accident was 0.22, almost three times the legal limit. He faces up to six years in prison if he is convicted, Romo said. [Source: CBS Channel 8 News.]
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