FULLERTON, Calif.—Two Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers were hospitalized in serious condition Nov. 21 after their patrol vehicle was struck by another vehicle on the Orange (57) Freeway in Fullerton, and that motorist was arrested on suspicion of DUI, authorities said.
The officers were injured around 2 a.m. as they searched for an object they believed had been thrown from a vehicle by a suspect who had been arrested following a pursuit earlier Nov. 21 morning, the LAPD reported.
According to police, officers from the Newton Division were on patrol near Washington Blvd. and Maple Ave. about 12:20 a.m. when they saw a vehicle that had been reported stolen.
“Officers attempted to stop the vehicle, but the driver accelerated away, and a pursuit was initiated,” an LAPD statement said. “When the pursuit traversed the 57 Freeway near the Yorba Linda [Boulevard] exit, officers broadcasted that the suspect threw an object out of the window onto the freeway. The pursuit concluded on the 11200 block of Atlantic Ave. in the City of Lynwood, where the suspect was taken into custody without incident. A firearm and narcotics were recovered from the stolen vehicle.”
The suspect, 31-year-old Jose Alinado of Compton, was booked on suspicion of being a felon in possession of a firearm, police said.
“Two Newton Division officers returned to the 57 Freeway to search for the object thrown from the stolen vehicle,” police said. “During the search, the officers were struck from behind while seated in their patrol vehicle by a suspected DUI driver. Both officers were transported to a local hospital and treated for significant head injuries...”
The driver of the Infiniti that hit the officers’ vehicle—a woman in her mid-20s—suffered “moderate” injuries and was arrested on suspicion of DUI, according to the California Highway Patrol. Her name was not immediately released.
LAPD Chief Michel Moore visited the injured officers at UCI Medical Center in Orange following the crash.
“They are expected to make a full recovery,” Mr. Moore told reporters afterward.
The California Highway Patrol issued a SigAlert for the northbound 57 Freeway and Yorba Linda Blvd. and closed all lanes of the freeway for hours while an investigation was conducted into the crash.
