A Virginia state trooper is recovering after being hit by an impaired driver while she was assisting another motorist for driving under the influence on Interstate 495 in Fairfax County.
Virginia State Police reported that Trooper C. Aziz responded to a sedan stopped in the northbound lane of the highway at 3 a.m. on Tuesday.
The driver of the sedan was uncooperative and refused to exit the vehicle or move to a safer location despite the trooper’s requests.
While Trooper Aziz was dealing with the sedan driver, a Jeep Cherokee collided with a tractor-trailer that was stopped due to the sedan blocking the travel lane.
The impact caused the tractor-trailer to spin and hit the trooper’s patrol car, which then struck the parked sedan and the trooper standing outside the driver’s side door.
Dashcam footage from the trooper’s patrol vehicle captured the incident, resulting in minor injuries to the trooper. She was taken to Fairfax INOVA Hospital for evaluation.
The driver of the Jeep, identified as Joanna Hatch, 35, was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol.
Erica Bernard, 43, the driver of the sedan, was also arrested and faces charges including driving under the influence of drugs, obstruction, possession of a controlled substance, refusal of a breathalyzer/blood test, and improper stopping on a highway.
Both Hatch and Bernard were taken to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.
