A Maryland State Police trooper was flown to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore after he was struck twice by a Lexus sport utility vehicle that led police on a chase through two states Wednesday before ending on Interstate 95 in Havre de Grace.
Trooper Michael E. O?Donnell?s injuries turned out to be less serious than originally thought, and the 35-year-old was treated and released from the hospital.
Police said the 52-year-old New Jersey woman who hit him is being held at Harford Memorial Hospital and faces charges of assault, resisting arrest, malicious destruction of property, fleeing and eluding, reckless endangerment and other related traffic offense, both in Maryland and Delaware.
Her name was not released because she seemed to suffer from a mental illness that led to the incident and hasn?t been officially charged pending a psychiatric evaluation, police said.
The incident began in Delaware when the woman failed to obey the direction of a state trooper on I-95 who was directing traffic around a crash scene.
“She wasn?t obeying his commands, ? and he eventually had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit by her,” said Delaware State Police spokesman Cpl. Jeffrey Whitmarsh.
Delaware troopers pursued the woman, who also drove through the Newark toll plaza, but the chase was called off for safety reasons as she approached Maryland, Whitmarsh said. Once in Maryland, state police picked up the pursuit while the woman continued to disobey police, according to Cpl. Arthur Betts. Troopers were finally able to stop the woman on I-95 and box her in with their cars. O?Donnell was hit after he got out of his car and attempted to get the woman to exit her vehicle.
“After repeated attempts to get the woman to stop, and her refusing,her behavior led troopers to believe there was a little more going on there ? mentally,” Betz said.
