Twin Cities Carry Forum Archive :: View topic - 'Tough as nails' cop hit by alleged drunken driver

Quote:

Tough as nails cop hit by alleged drunken driver

By ABBY SIMONS, Star Tribune

Last update: May 20, 2008 - 9:02 AM

A Brooklyn Park police officer is considered "tough as nails" and very lucky by her colleagues after suffering only bruises when an allegedly drunken driver slammed into her squad car during a traffic stop Monday night.

The officer, whose name was not released, made a traffic stop at about 10 p.m. in the 8600 block of Zane Avenue and was outside her car speaking with the driver when a full-size pickup truck slammed into the back of the squad car, which was then pushed into the first car. She narrowly avoided serious injury when the angle in which her car was parked caused it to hit only her leg, said Brooklyn Park Lt. Lee Folstad.

"We're extremely blessed," Folstad said. "I can't believe the squad video and I can't believe she's already back. She took a direct hit."

The driver of the pickup, a man in his 30s, was arrested for Driving Under the Influence. The Minnesota State Patrol investigated the accident scene.

The officer is since back on the job, though she's been encouraged to rest.

"We've encouraged her to take a couple days off," Folstad said. "She's tough as nails."

Author:	DeanC [ Tue May 20, 2008 8:39 am ]
Post subject:	'Tough as nails' cop hit by alleged drunken driver
Quote: Tough as nails cop hit by alleged drunken driver By ABBY SIMONS, Star Tribune Last update: May 20, 2008 - 9:02 AM A Brooklyn Park police officer is considered "tough as nails" and very lucky by her colleagues after suffering only bruises when an allegedly drunken driver slammed into her squad car during a traffic stop Monday night. The officer, whose name was not released, made a traffic stop at about 10 p.m. in the 8600 block of Zane Avenue and was outside her car speaking with the driver when a full-size pickup truck slammed into the back of the squad car, which was then pushed into the first car. She narrowly avoided serious injury when the angle in which her car was parked caused it to hit only her leg, said Brooklyn Park Lt. Lee Folstad. "We're extremely blessed," Folstad said. "I can't believe the squad video and I can't believe she's already back. She took a direct hit." The driver of the pickup, a man in his 30s, was arrested for Driving Under the Influence. The Minnesota State Patrol investigated the accident scene. The officer is since back on the job, though she's been encouraged to rest. "We've encouraged her to take a couple days off," Folstad said. "She's tough as nails."

Author:	TeamSpringFieldXD [ Tue May 20, 2008 9:07 am ]
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wheres the video?

Author:	mrokern [ Tue May 20, 2008 9:16 am ]
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On the overall list of "dumb shit not to do at any point in my life", slightly above "driving drunk" would be "driving drunk and slamming into a police car"!!! Can anyone else say, "Whoopsie"? Actually reminds me of a girl I knew in high school...the very same day that she got her license she decided to go to a friend's house, ran a stop sign, and broadsided a Milwaukee County Sheriff. She was walking / biking for a good long while after that one. -Mark

Author:	mnglocker [ Tue May 20, 2008 12:32 pm ]
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Similar story happend to the soon-to-be brother-inlaw yesterday. He was in his squad at a stop light and rear ended by a drunk lady at 4 in the afternoon. And yes she got a DUI and a ticket.

Author:	Macx [ Tue May 20, 2008 4:05 pm ]
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I was just talking about this phenomina with my sweetheart this morning. I conjecture it happens pretty frequently, and the cause is target fixation. On the race track, sometimes you get to focused on an object, like a brake marker or a wreck and you steer into it. Drunks I think are more likely to fixate and have these kinds of wrecks. . . put bright flashing lights in front of a drunk and .. . dat is what you get. It sucks, especially to be the drunk after the fact.

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Author:	1911fan [ Tue May 20, 2008 5:49 pm ]
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I was over in Golden Valley many many years ago and there was a garage that had maybe 30 trooper cars all banged up, a couple had front end damage but the vast majority had severe rear end damage. I, being the curious type leaned out my window of my truck and asked a guy who dropping one off the hook what was the deal with all the crunched cruisers and he yelled back that they tended to get one a week, all smacked by DUI or people who just fall asleep and drive in to them on the side of the road. My son who is reading this over my shoulder says WCCO had a bit on the late news about some trooper who had been hit something like 20 times in rear end accidents. I would think it would start to pay after a while to position some of those big crash pad trucks that they use for protecting street workers so troopers could call them out to ticket sites when they are working a stretch of busy high way.

Author:	Sipowicz [ Tue May 20, 2008 6:01 pm ]
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TeamSpringFieldXD wrote: wheres the video? I don't have a link, but saw it on Kare11 tonight. Man he hit that squad hard. The whole truck was caved in to the back seat. The guy blew .21 and was charged with Criminal Vehicular Operation and DUI. He has a prior DUI conviction as well as multiple moving violations.

Author:	Dick Unger [ Tue May 20, 2008 7:55 pm ]
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And, apparently, he's only 20 years old, still underage for drinking.

Author:	Pakrat [ Tue May 20, 2008 7:55 pm ]
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Kare11 link to video Kare11 link to the officer talking about the incident KSTP-

Author:	Srigs [ Tue May 20, 2008 10:15 pm ]
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I watched that story. She was darn lucky the squad car was parked where it was and was parked far enough away. Glad she came through with only a couple bumps and bruises.

Author:	kimberman [ Tue May 20, 2008 10:19 pm ]
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She's "tough as nails" but hides her name? You and I have to operate in public, why not cops?

Author:	tman065 [ Tue May 20, 2008 11:29 pm ]
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kimberman wrote: She's "tough as nails" but hides her name? You and I have to operate in public, why not cops? What do you mean about hiding her name? I found it in about 2 minutes of mouseclicking. And half of that time was spent trying to remember my password to the Strib's website. That aside, I bet everyone who needed to know her name at the time the incident happened, knew it. Look at this board as well. Why aren't we all using our real names here?

Author:	Suited [ Wed May 21, 2008 6:24 am ]
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IMHO almost every press release about a particular officer should include the officer's name. Landen Beard was a name I needed to know but his department and the media felt differently. Most of us on this board are anonymous but everyone should know who kimberman is.

Author:	Fubar [ Wed May 21, 2008 6:29 am ]
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Srigs wrote: I watched that story. She was darn lucky the squad car was parked where it was and was parked far enough away. It's my understanding that cops park their cars in a specific manner on traffic stops so that the car provides some protection from the motoring public while the officer is out of his or her squad. That said, it sure seems she definitely needed all the luck she had. There's a rumor going around that the State Patrol is advocating it's Troopers stand in front of the driver's side mirror and face backwards during traffic stops so that they can watch oncoming traffic while talking with the driver. Typically officers are trained to stay behind the driver's door since it provides more protection if the driver has a gun or other weapon. The philosophy is apparently the State Patrol is more afraid of traffic crashes than they are of "bad guys" out on the road. Given the statistics, I'm thinking they may be onto something.

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Author:	Pakrat [ Wed May 21, 2008 7:31 am ]
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It looked to me that the officer parked her squad in the middle of the lane (presumably to force other drivers to the next lane). Had she parked directly behind the car, I doubt the squad would have hit her. If she was in a normal police style flank, the squad could have been hit into more of a spin. This crash was square on the squad. That probably saved her life. Just observations.