A Philadelphia Police officer was recovering from several injuries Tuesday after authorities say a man the officer tried to stop for investigation struck him with a car in an attempt to flee.
Police on Tuesday afternoon identified the suspect in the hit-and-run as 26-year-old Maurice Taylor, of Ellsworth Street between 15th and 16th in Point Breeze.
The ordeal unfolded about 6:40 p.m. when the officer responded to a call for a person with a weapon in Grays Ferry. When the officer arrived in the area of 27th and Earp streets, he spotted the suspect later identified as Taylor and tried to stop him for investigation, police said. Instead of stopping, police said, Taylor jumped into a Volkswagen Passat and sped down Earp Street, up 28th Street and the wrong way on Sears Street. The officer pursued Taylor and attempted to get him to stop his car on Sears Street near 27th, police said, but Taylor sped up and struck the officer, throwing him into a parked car on the block, then took off again.
Police continued to pursue the Volkswagen for several blocks as Taylor sped away, disregarded traffic signals and eventually escaped, authorities said. The Volkswagen was later found near 22nd and Annin streets a short distance away, and two witnesses -- an 18-year-old woman and an 11-year-old boy who were in the car at the time of the chase -- were located. Taylor fled on foot.
Police said the injured officer was taken to Jefferson University Hospital to be treated for injuries including a broken leg, a shattered knee and lacerations to his head.
Police are asking that anyone with information on Taylor's whereabouts contact South Detectives at 215-686-3013 or dial 9-1-1.
