Police officer injured as motorist attempts to flee
A Ferndale police officer suffered a knee injury after police say a speeding motorist in a stolen Jeep was stopped and suddenly decided to drive off as the officer leaned inside the vehicle and tried to turn off the ignition.
The suspect, Donald Brezzell, 25, of Detroit is jailed on two counts of resisting and obstructing police, and fourthdegree fleeing and eluding.
Police said the incident happened about 3:10 a.m. Monday when the officer spotted the suspect speeding at 75 mph in a green Jeep Wrangler on Eight Mile Road near Livernois.
Brezell gave police a fake North Carolina driver’s license when he was stopped, along with fraudulent insurance paperwork, said Ferndale police public information Officer Jillian Mahlmeister.
The vehicle information number was missing from the dashboard and it turned out the Jeep was stolen in December in White Lake Township, police said.
A second officer arrived as backup and Brezzell complied when ordered to turn off the engine.
“As the officer opened the driver’s side door to tell (the suspect) to exit the vehicle,” Mahlmeister said, “the driver quickly turned the vehicle back on and accelerated while the officer was reaching inside the vehicle to turn it off.”
The officer was pulled along as the Jeep moved forward, injuring his knee.
The officer grabbed the steering wheel and was able to turn the Jeep into a Kroger parking lot while the backup officer boxed the suspect vehicle in with a patrol car, Mahlmeister said.
By that point the Jeep had traveled 100 yards into Royal Oak Township, where the Kroger store is.
“The driver was still trying to put the vehicle in reverse when the other officer pulled in front of it,” Mahlmeister said.
There was a brief struggle before police finally pulled the suspect out of the vehicle.
Police said the injured officer was taken to the hospital, but was expected to return to work this week.
“Fortunately, nobody was seriously injured in the incident,” Mahlmeister said.
Brezzell was arraigned Monday in Ferndale 43rd District Court and remains jailed on a $50,000, 10 percent, bond.
However, he is also being held on outstanding warrants from Southfield’s 46th District Court.
Brezzell is charged in Southfield with three counts of fraud, concealing stolen property, and concealing the identity of a motor vehicle.
The suspect is set to appear in Ferndale 43rd District Court for a probable cause conference at 1 p.m. June 22.
Each of the three Ferndale charges against Brezzell is a two-year felony.