Deputy Pushes Officers and Suspected Drunk Driver Out of Oncoming Car's Path
An Illinois deputy saved himself and others from an alleged drunk driver that nearly struck the group after they had pulled over another suspected intoxicated motorist, officials said.
Boone County Sheriff’s Deputy Charles Schutz was standing on the side of the road with two other law enforcement officers and man suspected of driving while intoxicated when another car came careening past, dashcam footage released by the sheriff’s office showed.
Schutz was monitoring the road as he and the others stood in the right lane and shoulder, where the suspected drunk driver’s vehicle and his police car were parked with its lights flashing.
"You have to keep your head on a swivel," he told WIFR-TV. "You're looking out for everybody."
Surveillance footage shows Schutz spring into action, pushing the group of men to safety as the car flew by.
Schutz can be seen running to his vehicle to give chase after the car drove off, appearing to veer into oncoming traffic as it avoided striking the cops.
That driver was arrested for allegedly driving under the influence, authorities said.
The Boone County Sheriff Office’s office shared the dashboard camera footage on its Facebook page, saying it “would like to remind everyone of ‘Scott’s Law,’ commonly referred to as the ‘move over law.’”
The law was named after Lieutenant Scott Gillen of the Chicago Fire Department, who was struck and killed in 2000 by an intoxicated driver as he prepared to leave the scene of a minor accident on the Dan Ryan Expressway.
“As of January 1st, 2017, the move over Law now applies to all vehicles that display flashing emergency lights, including commercial trucks and cars; the Law is no longer limited to authorized emergency vehicles only,” the Sheriff’s Office wrote on Facebook. “Please always remain alert and move over.”
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