KTLA News in Los Angeles reports that a Santa Monica police officer was hurt after being shot performing a routine traffic stop.  The officer, whose name hasn’t been released yet, suspected a motorist of drunk driving and pulled him over, eventually leading to the shooting.

Our car accident lawyers know that police officers put their lives on the line every day to keep our society as safe as possible.  A policeman was trying to prevent other drivers from suffering personal injuries or wrongful death as a result of a car accident caused by drunk driving, but in the process, ended up getting hurt himself.

Santa Monica officer shot after routine drunk driving traffic stop.

At about 1:30 early Tuesday morning, a Santa Monica policeman was wounded after being shot while performing a traffic stop near Pico and Lincoln boulevards.  The officer pulled over a driver who showed signs of being intoxicated behind the wheel.

Officers pulled over a sport utility vehicle (SUV) and in the middle of conducting a field sobriety test, the passenger of the SUV got out of the car and opened fire on the law enforcement officials.  The wounded officer was wearing a bulletproof vest, but the bullet still punctured his abdomen and he required medical treatment.

The motorist suspected of drunk driving was held behind as authorities in multiple agencies searched for the passenger.  About four hours later, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) officers found the shooting suspect near the original scene and more gunfire ensued.  The gunman was hospitalized, but his wounds aren’t fatal.  The officer he shot was taken to UCLA Westwood Medical Center where his wounds didn’t require surgery.

Information as to why the passenger opened fire has not been released, so there is much speculation.  It’s important to let the justice system take the proper course in finding out why a police officer was shot while protecting innocent drivers from suffering personal injuries as a result of a suspected drunk driver.

Our car accident lawyers in Southern California hope that the policeman in Santa Monica makes a full and speedy recovery from his gunshot wound.  We love to see policemen following their hunches to stop drunk drivers from causing car accidents, but we don’t want them to be potentially killed in the process.

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