Police chasing a suspected drunk driver in Lonoke Country Wednesday fired shots at his vehicle, but were only able to end the chase by forcing the driver into a ditch, according to a news release.
Lonoke County sheriff's spokesman Capt. David Bufford said the driver received bumps, scratches and a broken arm in the roughly 10-minute, 10-mile chase. The pursuit, which occurred about 3:30 p.m., ended when a state troop used a maneuver to send the fleeing car into a ditch, where it overturned and ejected the driver.
Police identified the driver as 54-year-old Wendell Bernard Jackson of Little Rock. Bufford said Jackson was recovering in the hospital Thursday.
Charges have not been announced against Jackson, who police said initially pulled over, failed a field sobriety test and punched an officer in the chest before fleeing north on Arkansas 15 in Keo, according to the release.
After leaving the highway and being cornered on a dead-end road, Jackson rammed two police cars and swerved toward sheriff's deputies who had stepped out of their vehicles, the release said.
One of the deputies fired several shots at the car's tires in an attempt to disable the car, but Jackson was able to flee back onto the highway, Bufford said.
The deputy has been placed on administrative leave, per department policy, authorities said.