A Virginia state trooper is recovering after a drunk driver hit her patrol car while she was pulled over with another motorist for allegedly driving under the influence.
Virginia State Police said Trooper C. Aziz responded to a sedan stopped in the northbound lane of Interstate 495 in Fairfax County around 3 a.m. Tuesday.
The driver of the sedan was still inside the vehicle and was refusing to cooperate with the trooper's requests to get out or move the car to a safer location, state police said.
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Virginia State Police Trooper C. Aziz was struck by a drunk driver early Tuesday while pulling over another motorist for driving under the influence. (Virginia State Police)
While Aziz was dealing with the driver of the sedan, a Jeep Cherokee collided with a tractor-trailer that was stopped in a travel lane because of where the sedan had stopped.
The Jeep hit the truck with such force that it spun and struck the police cruiser, causing the patrol car to strike the stopped sedan and the police officer, who was standing outside the driver's side door of the sedan.
Dashboard camera footage from the trooper's patrol car showed the incident, which “surprisingly” only left the trooper with minor injuries, police said. She was taken to Fairfax INOVA Hospital for evaluation.
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Officer C. Aziz was assisting another motorist believed to be driving under the influence when she was struck by a drunk driver on Interstate 495. (Virginia State Police)
The driver of the Jeep was identified as Joanna Hatch, 35 years old. She was arrested for driving under the influence, police said.
Erica Bernard, 43, was the driver of the sedan stopped on the side of the interstate and was also arrested. She faces charges of driving under the influence of drugs, obstruction, possession of a schedule 1 or 2 substance, refusal to take a breathalyzer/blood test and improperly stopping a vehicle on a highway.
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Both Hatch and Bernard were taken to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.
