Officer hurt trying to stop car

By Karen Shih

July 9, 2008

An Annapolis police officer who was trying to reach the keys in a stolen car was injured when the driver hit the gas in an attempt to flee, police said yesterday.

Officer Robert Owen, 25, a two-year veteran of the force, tried to pull over the stolen red Honda Prelude on Aris T. Allen Boulevard about 4:40 p.m. Monday, but the driver would not obey, police said.

When the driver, Rodney Pitt, 50, of Fort Washington, got stopped in traffic, Owen got out of his car and ordered Pitt to shut off the engine. Pitt refused, police said, so Owen reached into the car to shut it off. Pitt accelerated the vehicle while the officer's arm was still inside, lost control and hit a tree.

Pitt and Owen were taken to Anne Arundel Medical Center for their injuries and were treated and released.

Police said they found two liquor bottles, reported by Eastport Liquors as stolen earlier in the day, in the car, as well as marijuana and cocaine. The police had not determined who owns the car.

Pitt was charged with second-degree assault and drug offenses. Police said he had also been wanted on an outstanding U.S. marshal's warrant for failure to appear in a District of Columbia court on a charge of selling cocaine.

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Officer hurt trying to stop car

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