St. Louis Police Officer Struck During Chase Needs Partial Leg Amputation
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Gunshots from Injured Mo. Police Officer Struck by Car Saved His Life: Chief
- A St. Louis police officer severely injured and unable to move after he was struck by a vehicle while trying to make an arrest fired safety shots, so colleagues could locate him.
By Dana Rieck
Source St. Louis Post-Dispatch
ST. LOUIS — Police on Thursday said they have tracked down the identification of the carjacking suspect hit and severely injured on Interstate 70 on Monday morning.
The 15-year-old boy from Illinois remains hospitalized in critical and unstable condition, St. Louis police said.
The police department said other police agencies helped them identify the teen.
The teen was hit while running from St. Louis police Officer Nathan Spiess, who was also struck by the car and severely injured. The 31-year-old officer underwent a partial leg amputation earlier this week.
The incident began when the Metro East Auto Theft Task Force was investigating Monday morning in north St. Louis after a Toyota Rav4 was carjacked from East St Louis. The SUV was spotted in the 4800 block of Cote Brilliante Avenue, police said. Officers saw the suspects get out of that car and enter an Acura that had been reported stolen from Belleville.
Officers chased the Acura, and eventually it drove onto eastbound I-70 from northbound Kingshighway, police said. But the Acura had hit police spike strips before getting on the highway, and it lost control and struck an uninvolved car just before Shreve Avenue.
Police say the driver, 18-year-old Mekhi Campbell, got out of the car and ran. He was arrested shortly after and on Tuesday he was charged with first-degree assault on a police officer, armed criminal action and aggravated fleeing.
The passenger in the Acura’s backseat remained in the car and was also arrested. He had not been charged as of Thursday morning.
Campbell’s front seat passenger, the injured teen, also ran, according to police. He jumped over a concrete barrier into the eastbound express lanes. Seconds later, as Spiess held the teen at gunpoint while climbing over the barrier, both were hit by a Cadillac. The driver of that car fled the scene but was identified and arrested by police hours later after asking the public for help.
That driver, 62-year-old Frank Carr, was charged with tampering with evidence and two counts of leaving the scene of an accident, causing serious injuries.
Defense Attorney Bill Marsh said in court on Wednesday that Carr was swerving to avoid the accident he saw and didn’t intend to hit anyone. He also said Carr approached police officers himself when he heard that they were looking for him.
Both Carr and Campbell were denied bond.
This is the second time Spiess, the officer, has been injured while on duty. In 2022, a car he was chasing crashed, and multiple men got out and shot at Spiess and his partner, Colin Ledbetter. Spiess and Ledbetter returned fire, and one of the men was killed.
Spiess’ twin brother, Nicholas Spiess, set up a GoFundMe for the officer on Wednesday afternoon. It had raised almost $70,000 by mid-morning Thursday.
“The injuries sustained will have a permanent impact on his everyday life, his passion for playing soccer, and his love for being a police officer,” his brother wrote. “Unfortunately, he is no stranger to injury.”
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