Motorist Who Allegedly Tried to Run Over Officer Is Hospitalized

Los Angeles police have still not booked the man who was taken into custody and then hospitalized after he allegedly tried to run over an officer during a traffic stop on Saturday, according to Lt. Rafael Ramirez of the LAPD's Van Nuys Division.

"The suspect was taken to the hospital after the incident and he has not been booked yet," said Ramirez, who said he could not provide the man's name until he is out of the hospital and taken to jail.

The incident occurred early Saturday morning near Chandler Boulevard and Hazeltine Avenue in Sherman Oaks.

"The man who tried to run over the officer took off on foot, and a helicopter search over the neighborhood occurred," said Karen Cini, head block captain of the Tyrone Group Neighborhood Watch, which numbers more than 100 residents in the North Sherman Oaks area.

"People always want to know what's going on when helicopters start circling overhead," Cini said.

Cini sent an emergency email to people in her Neighborhood Watch group telling them to stay inside their homes while police helicopters and patrol cars searched for the suspect in the darkness.

"We don't know if the person is armed or not," Cini's message said.

The incident began when police pulled the motorist over, but when an officer approached the vehicle the man tried to run the policeman over, according to initial reports.

The officer was not hurt, but the man took off on foot with police chasing him in the darkness, police said.

At about 4 a.m., the man was captured and, according to Ramirez, he was transported to a hospital for reasons which have not been released.