Two Md. Deputies Injured in Crash During Traffic Stop
By Mary Grace Keller
Source The Frederick News-Post, Md.
Two Frederick County Sheriff's Office deputies were hospitalized after a passing vehicle struck their cruisers during a traffic stop in the Knoxville area Tuesday night, according to the FCSO.
While deputies conducted a routine traffic stop in the area of U.S. Route 340 and Catholic Church Road at about 8 p.m., a vehicle approached and failed to move over, FCSO said in the release. The passing vehicle struck one FCSO cruiser, authorities said, pushing it into a second FCSO vehicle.
One deputy was thrown over the guardrail and lost consciousness, suffering leg and shoulder injuries. The other deputy, who was seated in his vehicle, suffered head injuries. They received treatment at Frederick Health Hospital and Meritus Medical Center, according to the FCSO.
Spokesman Todd Wivell said the deputies left the hospital Tuesday night and are recovering at home. Their identities are not being released.
An initial investigation found the striking vehicle pushed the cruisers roughly 45 feet, police said. The crash is still under investigation, and charges against the driver are pending.
"Our deputies are very lucky that they did not sustain severe injuries as this could have been a lot worse," Sheriff Chuck Jenkins said in a prepared statement. "The Maryland Move Over Law requires drivers approaching from the rear of an emergency vehicle using visual signals while stopped on a highway to, if possible, make a lane change into an available lane not immediately adjacent to the emergency vehicle. Our initial investigations show the driver of the striking vehicle failed to obey this law and our deputies were injured. Quite frankly, this could have resulted in a horrific tragedy."
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