A Kentucky police officer who "thought he had been shot" when a rock was thrown at his car on Sunday was taken to hospital after losing control of the vehicle.
The Boyle County Sheriff's Office confirmed in a brief statement yesterday that two teenagers had been charged with hurling the rock into the windshield of deputy Philip Dean's vehicle. An image posted online showed the wreckage of the car, which had flipped over multiples times.
The incident occurred just before 5 a.m., local cops said. The deputy had been responding to complaints that someone was throwing rocks at semi-trucks along Lexington Road.
The sheriff's department explained in a Facebook post: "As the deputy was traveling east on Lexington Road, a rock was thrown from a west bound [sic] vehicle as they passed."
"The rock went through the deputy's windshield and struck the deputy in the face," it added. "The deputy's vehicle left the roadway, struck several trees, then rolled over several times."
The suspect's car, spotted by another driver, was described as a dark-colored passenger vehicle. A cash reward was offered for information leading to the prosecution of the offenders. The injured deputy was taken to hospital with broken bones and lacerations, KDVR reported. He is expected to is make a full physical recovery and has been released from medical care.
"[The deputy's] initial reaction was he thought he got shot because he windshield just exploded and he didn't know what had happened," Sheriff Derek Robbins told local media, according to WLEX-TV. The sheriff said charges against the juveniles include assault on a police officer.
The rock, found inside the cop car, was the size of a "big softball," Robbins said (via KDVR). Despite his shock, the injured officer dragged himself from the vehicle and called for help.
"[Deputy Dean] was able to get on radio but didn't know where he was at so they had him call 911 to ping his location," Robbins noted. "The vehicle was in an area that couldn't be seen from the road...the rock could have killed him...someone was watching over him."
The sheriff's office said the deputy was at recovering at home.
"The entire [office] wishes to say thank you to everyone for their kind concerns and well wishes," a Facebook post said on Sunday. A scheduled court date for the two teenagers was not released.
Anyone with information is asked to contact (859) 238-1220.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jason Murdock is a staff reporter for Newsweek.
Based in London, Murdock previously covered cybersecurity for the International Business Times UK ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
